Flowers on the Wind
by Alannada
Summary: It seemed her future was already planned. Until she met him. It's a Sess/Kagu, but it's about Kagura's reincarnation, so maybe it's more like a Sess/OC. Chapters from ch 15 onward are by 4evaconfuzzled
1. He Who Rules

Summary: It seemed her future was already planned. Until she saw him.

A/N: I tried.  
This story was a very poor attempt on writing a Sess ship. And since it's around the Sess ship day of Inuvember I decided to name this story my answer for that prompt (really, I can't ship the guy with anyone so it doesn't look like a middle school stage play)  
Feel totally free to flame me in your comment, I need to know how much I screwed this one. If you don't I might make a sequel one day..

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Flowers on the Wind

1\. He Who Rules

* * *

All the girls in the teahouse, who weren't busy taking care of the customers or performing other duties, were giggling and whispering to each other excitedly. Kazubana entered the small space behind a beautifully painted screen, dividing the big private room in two. Six girls were crowded by the screen, spying on the guests who were currently getting seated on the other side of the screen.

The girls looked like rare flowers, dressed in vibrant colors, their hair adorned with pins and ribbons. Kazubana's attire wasn't different from their, it was evening so it was very likely all of them could be summoned to entertain guests, so they had to look their best. They were still students, so their duties were limited, but each one of them could at least pour sake and engage a guest in a game.

"Kazu!" Mika grabbed Kazubana's wrist and practically dragged her down to kneel beside her. "You won't believe it!"

"What's going on?" Kazubana looked at the rest, pretty confused. They shouldn't be there, the small area behind the screen should be empty and the girls (including her) should have their lesson with Mother Mi. But Mother Mi had been called to greet some high ranking guest and the girls had sneaked here to see the newcomer who was so important to make their teacher just walk away from the room. In Kazubana's ten years in the teahouse it was the second time the stern and wise woman did something like that. She was very firm about teaching her daughters until they were perfect, just like she was. Kazubana joined her friends after fulfilling her task or letting the kitchen know that Mother Mi wanted the special guests to have the best meal the cooks could make.

"They came in just a minute ago!" whispered Hana, who was peeking through a hole in the screen. Hana was the only tanuki among them, was petite and kind to everyone. It was hard not to like her. Now she moved so Kazubana could peek at the guests herself.

First her sight rested on Mother Mi, her kimono plain blue, contrasting with the stripes the tigress had in her hair. Then Kazu looked at the pair the owner of the teahouse was bowing to and barely kept a cry of surprise inside.

A human woman - a miko! - was standing there, sporting her red and white robes, her wavy black hair falling around a smiling face of delicate beauty. Her brown eyes were unlike any miko's Kazubana had ever seen - there was no hate, only politeness and warmth when she bowed back. And beside her - Kazu had to bit her bottom lip - stood a hanyou. He wore red, his hair was white, long and messy, almost hiding his dog ears. He had a sword at his side and was very handsome.

It was unheard of - a miko visiting a youkai teahouse and a hanyou, who dared to approach the place where many guests could kill them with a flick of a wrist? Mother Mi wasn't one to turn away any customer who could pay and wouldn't cause too much trouble, but this seemed odd for her to not only allow them in, but bow before them like she was right now. Kazubana thought that maybe this was the reason they were in the private room, not in the main room where most of the guests were enjoying music and sake.

"We're greatly grateful that you, honorable guests, decided to rest under our humble roof," said Mother Mi, bowing yet again. "Please, if we may bring you sake or tea?"

"Tea would be wonderful, thank you," replied the miko, her voice soft and sweet. Kazubana moved away from the hole so others could look at the pair sitting down on two pillows beside a low table. The room was practically empty, save the pillows and the table, but it was elegant and there was a scroll hanging on the opposite wall, depicting a kitsune dancer with a fan and fox fire glowing around her. Under the scroll was a vase with a single orange chrysanthemum. Little Riwa peered at them while Kazubana looked at her sisters.

The daughters of the teahouse gathered around her. All girls in Kazu's class were around fourteen years old, with Mika being the oldest in the group. Beside the tanuki girl there were two more animal youkai, others were element youkai like Kazubana. None held prejudice towards hanyous, but it was so unlikely to meet one. Most hanyous were hunted and killed before growing up. Seeing one sitting in the best room of the teahouse, with the great Mother Mi bowing to him like that was like something from a crazy dream.

"I'll prepare the best tea we have myself, honorable lady," Mother Mi assured the miko. "And I'll bring the finest sake for you, my lord."

"Keh, don't trouble yourself, I don't drink sake," replied the hanyou, his voice deep and rough. "And my alpha won't be drinking today too," he added. The crew behind the screen gasped and looked at each other. Inu youkai were pack ones, but what pack would accept a half-breed?

"Should I prepare tea for you and the great lord, then?" inquired Mother Mi, her voice polite.

"Yeah, whatever."

"As you wish. Your meal and the tea will be brought shortly," Kazubana and her friends heard the tiger youkai leaving the room.

"It's so lovely here," they heard the miko speak, wonder clear in her voice. "I've never been to a place like this."

"Feh, it's not a place you should visit. Nor should I," the hanyou grumbled. "You saw the youkai in the common room? They were this close from attacking us and making me blow the place to pieces"

Kazubana smiled, the hanyou was obviously exaggerating, no hanyou could have such power. She waited patiently for her turn to look at the pair. The miko was leaning against the hanyou's side and his arm was wrapped around her waist in an affectionate manner. The woman tipped her head up to look at her companion, who bent down and rubbed his nose against her cheek before stealing a slow, lingering kiss from her waiting lips. The sight made Kazubana's heart flutter with longing.

As a daughter of a teahouse of big standing she wouldn't be pushed to entertain guests in sexual way, unless she agreed to it, but falling in love was forbidden for her, at least as long as she was living and working under Mother Mi's roof. Until today she didn't have a problem with it, but the unlikely pair on the other side of the screen was the first couple obviously in love she had ever seen. Her young heart wished to share such tender embrace, such warmth with someone else - just for a moment before she pushed this desire away. No one would fall in love with a daughter of a teahouse, who was an artist, an entertainer, a woman taught many arts, but not the art of being a life mate.

Suddenly, the shoji slid open and a new person walked inside. Kazu could sense his youki, like an echo of a distant thunder, impressing, forcing obedience and respect. And yet she felt he was actually hiding most of his power. He was clad in white, with a fur tail thrown over his shoulder. His hair, silvery-white like the hanyou's, was long and smoothed. his chiseled face making the watching girl lose her breath. His golden eyes were stern and serious, underlined by twin stripes. The half moon on his forehead was the final piece that made Kazubana realize who it was. There was only one fitting this description.

The Lord of the Western Lands, Lord Sesshomaru, heir of Lady Kimoko.

Kazubana couldn't look away from the man walking with predatory grace towards the pair. She didn't notice her sisters fleeing in fright of his youki, she didn't worry he could attack the hanyou and miko occupying the best room, one that supposed to be on disposal of a daiyoukai like himself.

"Little brother, are you so struck by your affection towards the miko you lost awareness of your surroundings?" he asked, his voice cool. Kazubana blinked in shock at hearing him calling the hanyou his brother. The half youkai shrugged. "You're being watched by a spy."

"It's just a girl from the teahouse," Kazubana froze, fright gripping her heart when she realized that she was alone in the narrow area behind the screen and the daiyoukai could easily sense and smell her presence. So could the couple, because they didn't look at all fazed by his words. The miko looked in the direction of the screen with a soft smile.

"Come out, we won't harm you," she said gently, as if she was talking to a scared wild animal. The daiyoukai sat down on the third pillow, on the other side of the table, opposite to where the pair was seated.

Kazubana bit her bottom lip, unsure what to do. She was supposed to do whatever was requested of her, unless it was against the teahouse rules. But she felt confused and afraid of the guests gathered around the table. She shouldn't be there and she feared the possible punishment

Before she could decide what to do Mother Mi reentered the room, holding a tray with tea. She almost dropped it when she saw the third guest simply sitting there. The young girl didn't waste the opportunity sent from the heavens, she fled before the guests could remember about her existence. She didn't know that none of the guests forgot about her, they spared glances her way while the teahouse owner was still staring at the daiyoukai.


	2. She, The Wind Dancer

**She, The Wind Dancer**

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Kazubana fled through the narrow corridors of the inner house. They were much less spectacular than the parts of the teahouse accessible to the guests. She was passing by various sliding door that led to storage rooms, bedchambers and rooms where teachers were giving lesson.

She ran like the wind itself, as always light on her feet and fast. She stopped when she reached the room she was sharing with Hana and Mika and sneaked into it to find all her missing friends from before sitting there.

"Kazu! Why didn't you leave with us?" asked Mika, obviously relieved to see Kazubana. The wind youkai sank to the floor and took a few calming breaths. She could see curious eyes of her friends on her, practically burning for answers. "You could've been found out and punished!"

"It's the Lord of the West, he's here," she explained, taking control over her fast beating heart.

"Ah, now I understand," Riwa smiled shyly. "He's so handsome, you got distracted by looking at him and didn't notice us go."

Kazubana merely nodded, blushing. There was no shame in admiring a handsome male and Lord Sesshomaru was the most handsome one there, at least in her eyes.

"It's good you're here," Mika said and smoothed her obi. "Alright, everyone to their rooms and try to practice for tomorrow. And no sneaking on the honorable guests again, the lord wouldn't appreciate anyone spying on him."

Kazubana felt a block of ice in her stomach. She had been practically caught doing just that. As the rest of her friends, sans Hana and Mika, left the room, Kazubana went to fetch her brush, paper and ink stone, planning on practicing her calligraphy. Mika was practicing a transformation spell while Hana was, from the look of it, trying to memorize poetry. They looked like dutiful daughters of the teahouse, striving to be artists in their own right and to be able to provide entertainment.

Yet, even knowing she should use her free time to practice, as any dutiful girl should, Kazubana found herself daydreaming.

She could remember the air swirling around the lord as he walked, his youki wrapping around him like a mantle. His hair was flowing and long, much longer than hers. He was awe inspiring and emanated authority and power. Kazubana had seen many strong youkai, but none of his status.

Suddenly she wanted to just drop the brush she was holding and go outside, to run across the hills and forests surrounding the teahouse. She rarely dared to follow such urges, it wasn't safe to leave the teahouse. After all the world outside was violent and scary. Kazubana was lucky she had a place to stay and wasn't abused by her superiors. Still, sometimes she just couldn't help herself, roaming freely through the lands around felt so right. She loved the feeling of freedom and independence. Maybe one day she'd leave to leave the teahouse and wander around, free as the wind itself. But first she had to pay her debt to the teahouse for taking her in.

Still, she sometimes couldn't help herself... She longed for much more than just being controlled by someone else, she wanted to be in control of her own fate. Sometimes, she dreamed of being a fierce warrior or a sorceress able to raise dead and make them do her biding, fighting for her. In those dreams she longed for her freedom, knowing she was missing something very important and she'd always wake up to the deep feel of longing.

Suddenly all the girls in the room stopped whatever they were doing and started listening carefully. Someone was hastily walking through the corridor until the footsteps came to a stop in front of their room.

"Girls," one of the older servants stuck her head in the room. "Prepare swiftly and come with me, you have to entertain our most honorable guests in the private room."

"We? But why we? There are more skilled girls!" Hana covered her mouth, obviously frightened by the idea she was going to perform in front of a daiyoukai.

"The honorable guests want to see a wind youkai dance and since Kazubana's the only one here and you and Mika are good musicians Mother Mi ordered you to do it." the servant explained and waited for them to move.

Kazubana wasn't sure what to feel as she made sure her make up was perfect. On one hand she was frightened to stand in front of the odd trio who most certainly knew that it had been her spying on them. On the other hand... She felt excited to perform and to do so in front of the lord. A fleeting thought that she could catch his eye and make him return to see her someday entered her heart.

Five minutes later Kazu and her two companions stood in front of the private room, the servant looking at the nervous trio.

"Do make Mother proud," they heard before they were left alone. Mika took a calming breath and slid open the door. All three were supposed to bow and ask for the permission to enter, but a loud growl coming from the room gave them pause and all three young women looked at the guests in shock and fright. Kazubana expected to be killed on the spot for spying, but it quickly became quite obvious she wasn't on the killing list just yet.

The human woman was sitting under a wall, holding a teapot as if she barely managed to save it, a look of alarm on her face. The elegant cherry wood table was laying on the floor, two legs broken. The hanyou was laying across the maimed furniture, with the daiyoukai bending over him, his hand grasping the half-breed's throat while he was growling at him. The youki of both males filled the little room so thickly Kazubana doubted anyone could breathe easily while inside. The hanyou growled up at the stronger dog, obviously not wanting to submit. The daiyoukai lowered his head and bared his fangs at the hanyou.

"This one shall deal with this matter alone," he said in a low tone.

"Like hell you are!" the hanyou hissed and pulled his legs to himself, probably wanting to kick the daiyoukai off of him. "You want me as your general, then let me act as one!"

Before the hanyou could do or say anything more the lord let go of him and stepped back.

"We shall continue our discussion later," he said in a regal tone before turning his cool eyes to look at the three young girls still kneeling in the doorway, staring at him with mixture of fright, awe and confusion. "You may come in."

"Don't be afraid," Kazu was shocked when she saw the human smile as if she hadn't been the witness to a youkai power struggle. For some reason it felt like the miko was used to seeing these two fighting. The hanyou moved to sit beside the miko while the three girls entered the room.

Mika was the one who spoke when they bowed to the unlikely trio who were observing them, The miko was smiling encouragingly, but her male companions looked indifferent, but alert, their golden eyes focusing on Kazu and making her shiver.

"Honorable guests, let this unworthy ones entertain you," she said and picked her small drum. Hana raised her flute to her lips and Kazubana slowly stood in front of them, feeling numb and fearing she wouldn't move a muscle, bringing shame upon herself and the teahouse, waking the lord's wrath.

She had to perform and do it flawlessly. She had to show she was worthy of the guests' time and maybe.. Maybe the lord would come back again and wish to see her dance? Hope filled her heart and pushed her anxiety away for a moment. She dared to look in his yellow eyes and saw something there... recognition? She felt her heart skip a beat, but then remembered the event that had happened not too long ago. The lord probably only recognized her because she had been spying on him earlier. After all it was the first time they were seeing each other...

Hope dimmed in her heart, replaced by bitter taste of longing and regret after something she had lost or never had. This was the moment when Hana and Mika started to play, both a little anxious because of their performance in front of the daiyoukai, but not nearly as much as Kazubana. After all they hadn't been uncovered spying on him. And they never felt this heart-squeezing longing she felt.

But somehow they picked the best song to reflect Kazu's feelings at this moment, a melancholy filled lament of a lover who was betrayed by a man. Mika's soft voice added to the music and Kazubana somehow found herself dancing.

She had been afraid she wouldn't move, but now she was, her movements fluid and graceful, portraying the emotions of the betrayed girl left behind by a cruel lover. She put her longing in the dance, her hands raising and swaying like fading flowers in autumn. For the duration of the dance, for a blissful moment, she didn't remember she had an audience.

Mika and Hana glanced towards the guests. The miko and the hanyou seemed to enjoy the performance. The daiyoukai's expression didn't betray his feelings, but his eyes were following Kazu's every move. Their sister was a sight to behold, as all wind youkai she was agile, graceful and moved with ease.

Finally the music stopped and both girls put their hands in their laps. Kazubana bowed her head and resumed her place on Mika's left, all three waiting for the guests' command.

"That was so beautiful!" the miko praised, clasping her hands in front of herself. "Sad, but beautiful."

"You performed well," the daiyoukai spoke, his voice emotionless. "You brought honor to your Mother. For your effort this one wants to give you a small token of appreciation."

The hanyou looked surprised at the lord as he reached into his sleeve and pulled out of it two gold coins. Hana and Mika almost didn't dare to approach him, but he gestured for them to take them. Both bowed and thanked for his too generous gift. after all guests didn't have to give money to the daughters of the teahouse, only to pay the Mother for their services. Then he reached into his other sleeve and pulled out...

"You had it all this time?" the half-breed and the miko exclaimed when the lord opened a white and red fan. Lord Sesshomaru ignored them as he closed the fan and offered it to Kazubana.

"Accept this and keep the giver of this fan in your memory, wind dancer," he said, his voice sounding almost soft. Kazubana slowly reached a hand and tentatively picked the item from his hand, she didn't dare to look into his face as she pressed the gift to her chest. She bowed her head, trying to find the right words to thank him.

"My lord... I don't know how..." she started.

"Open it," came his order and Kazubana licked her lips before she raised the fan and opened it with a snap.

She took a deep, hissing breath as images flashed before her eyes, faster than a lightning, changing in a rapid succession. Youki swirled around her and she was vaguely aware of the other people in the room watching her, saying something, but all she could hear was the howl of the wind.

With a cry of distress the young wind youkai fell to the floor.

Mika was about to jump towards her friend and call for help, confused by what was happening, but she was too slow. The daiyoukai was already at Kazubana's side. He gathered the fainted girl in his arms and stood up, glaring at both her and Hana.

"Inuyasha," he spoke.

"What?" the hanyou barked, obviously annoyed at whatever had transpired a moment ago. The miko at his side rose to her feet and whispered the lord's name.

"You are allowed to take care of the matter we had discussed earlier," the lord stated.

"What's wrong with her? Can I help?" the miko asked.

"The girl is merely overwhelmed," the daiyoukai stated. "You may stay here or leave. Jaken will take care of speaking to the Mother. Tanuki."

"Y-yes, my lord?" Mika bowed immediately.

"You are to pack her personal things and give them to this one' retainer. You are allowed to go to your quarters."

He didn't wait for her confirmation and left the room, carrying Kazubana out of her life and the teahouse. Mika turned towards the hanyou and miko, both looking pretty shaken, but not afraid.

"What do you want?" the hanyou barked, scowling. "It's not my fault he never explains shit."

"Inuyasha!" the miko scolded and offered the girls a warm smile. "Don't worry, your friend is safe. Thank you for playing for us."


	3. She, The Free Wind

3\. She, The Free Wind

* * *

Warm sunlight was shining right in her face. She frowned and was about to roll over when she realized that there couldn't any sunlight in her room at the morning since the window was facing North. The next realization that came to her mind was that the bed on which she was laying was much softer than her own. And the air smelled of intoxicating flowers and pine.

She wanted to gather her thoughts. but her head was heavy and spinning. She was trying to sort her memories and the visions and dreams that danced across her mind.

'It was like when I opened that fan a dam was broken in my mind,' she thought absently. Then she sensed youki of another person in the room. It was so weak that for a moment Kazu was thinking someone was hiding their power. But it soon became apparent that it simply wasn't a powerful youkai. Feeling relieved upon realizing that Kazubana opened her eyes and finally looked around the room where she was.

It was a spacious chamber, tatami mats laid out to show their pattern in the sunlight falling in through the shoji opening onto a beautiful garden. Kazu saw a few pieces of furniture, including a table and a cabinet, all bearing Chinese ornaments. Her futon could easily fit three people and was laid out on a small platform. Beside the door that probably led into the rest of the household sat a black-haired inu youkai girl in a blue kimono. She was putting some beads on a string, but when Kazu looked at her she lifted her black eyes and immediately dropped to a bow.

"You're awake, my lady!" she said kindly. "My name is Mai and I'm assigned to be your maid. Whatever you desire you just need to name it."

Kazubana sat up, shocked by her actions and words. To say she wasn't used to such treatment would be an understatement, She was the one to bow to people, ask for orders and call them lords and ladies.

"What...? Why...? How...?" she uttered, pulling the blanket to her bare torso. She didn't know this place, it wasn't a part of the teahouse and Mai most certainly wasn't a servant there. She frowned, but the last clear memory she had was of opening that fan... The rest was but a blur of images, sounds, feelings so much similar to those she felt that they seemed to be her own. But she was sure they weren't hers. She had never fought, had never flew on a huge feather over the lands. Those visions were more like the stuff of her dreams than anything she had experienced in her waking hours.

"My lady," the inu smiled at her warmly. She appeared to be a bit older than herself and pretty nice. Somehow she reminded her of Hana and her gentle nature. "Lord Sesshomaru brought you here the previous night and ordered us to take care of you."

Lord Sesshomaru.

Kazubana bit her bottom lip thinking about the dashingly handsome daiyoukai and his intense eyes following her when she had danced. She blushed and quickly focused at Mai.

"This is the Tiger Lily Pavilion, a part of the Western Palace," the other girl said. "You are to remain within this walls, but are free to roam and all of the servants will gladly fulfill your demands. The garden is also open to you, but you are forbidden to leave, unless the lord permits you. You aren't a prisoner," she added when she saw the wind youkai's face paling. "It's for your own safety, since the land around the Palace is crawling with the West's soldiers."

Kazu felt a bit relieved. It made sense to stay away from a crowd of soldiers and if all Mai just told her was true she had no desire to test the hospitality of the lord and disobey his demands.

"The new Inu no Taisho is going to ascend the next full moon and the army will pledge their loyalty to him," the inu youkai looked pretty excited. "From what I heard he and his pack are going to be here in three days."

Kazu knew that the West had no Great General for over two centuries, but she didn't really care who would it be. Generals and armies weren't things she was concerned with, she just knew to stay clear from drunk warriors and that was all. Who was the leader of the Western army wouldn't influence her life and there was little chance she would even see the man, being still in training.

That made her think again about her current situation. She was in the Western Palace, for some reason the lord had taken her away from the teahouse. She wondered if he just kidnapped her or paid her debt and took her in as a private escort or a mistress. A thought that the Lord of the West would want her, Kazubana, to be his mistress, made her almost laugh out loud. There were more beautiful, talented and experienced ladies he could take. Anyway, it was obvious Mai hadn't the answers for the questions Kazubana had.

Mai was a pleasant companion and eager to answer all questions of her new mistress. If she knew Kazu was a daughter of a teahouse she didn't show it in any way. She helped Kazu find a bathroom and then provided a beautiful silk kimono for her. She also insisted of her to carry the fan given to her by the lord. Kazubana didn't dare to open it again, but felt strangely whole and powerful with it tucked in her obi. After a light meal of fruit and rice Kazubana decided to investigate the garden.

The Tiger Lily Pavilion was a big building embracing the spacious garden from three sides. The fourth side was guarded by a tall wall, creating a private area where one could rest in peace, enjoying the beautiful flowerbeds, the shade of cherry and plum trees or the music of several little streams crossing the area and gathering in a small pond with koi fish. Kazu had always thought the gardens of the teahouse were beautiful, but they were nothing compared to the lush colors and beauty of this place.

She wandered across the area, enjoying the sights and the crisp mountain air. The wind was free there, swaying the tops of the trees. Kazu sat on a small bench near the pond, soaking in the warmth of the sun and the feel of the air against her being.

Suddenly a youki brushed over hers, an aura much stronger than any of the servants' working in the Pavilion. Kazubana turned her head towards it and found a figure observing her from the nearest sand-covered path.

In the broad daylight his whole being seemed to shimmer, his face perfectly calm and his eyes showing great intellect and control. At the same time she felt safe and afraid when she looked at him. He wore white, his mokomoko pristine silver, just like his hair.

"My lord!" Kazubana shook herself out of her daze and sank to her knees, bowing deeply to the man.

"Your name is Kazubana, is it correct?" he spoke. Kazu didn't dare to look up, but felt him approaching her without hurry.

"Yes, my lord," she licked her suddenly dry lips. "May I ask..."

"The fan you were given belonged to a woman," he cut her in and she realized he stood right in front of her. "A strong wind sorceress named Kagura."

The name made Kazubana shiver, it was the name she knew from her visions. Multiple encounters with the lord standing in front of her came to her mind, whispered promises, stolen caresses, battles... A field of flowers, her heart pierced by immense pain and those golden eyes looking at her with longing and regret only she could see...

"Was she... Was she important to you, my lord?" she dared to ask, realizing that he was in control of their talk and that she would learn from him only what he deemed necessary for her to know. She could only hope it'd include the answer to her questions. Why was she there? Why was she given the fan? Why those odd visions were still haunting her mind?

"She was," he replied in a voice barely above a whisper. "Stand up and sit with this one. This Sesshomaru desires to talk to you."

Kazubana obeyed, trying to control the swirling emotions within herself, desires she haven't felt before, cravings that had been foreign to her young body. Now she was pretty sure that somehow Kagura's fan kept her memories and let her, Kazubana, witness them.

Lord Sesshomaru was already seated on the bench, so she quickly followed his example, hoping it wouldn't be a sign of insolence to sit on the bench with the great daiyoukai like she was his equal. After all he had ordered her so.

"What can I do for you, my lord?" she asked, putting her hands neatly in her lap, only the tips of her fingers visible from under the trailing sleeves of her kimono.

"This one paid your debt to the teahouse," he stated as if he was telling her about buying a rice cookie on a stand during a festival. Kazubana gasped and bit her bottom lip. In the eye of the law she became his and she wasn't sure if she could hope to get free one day. After all in the teahouse she'd get free after a century or two of servitude, she doubted she could repay her debt to the Lord of the West in the same manner.

"This one wishes to make a deal with you, Kazubana," he continued, ignoring the emotions playing across her face. "You are to stay in this one's palace for three years, then you'll be free to leave and your debt considered paid."

"My... My lord...?" Kazubana frowned. What was he saying? And more importantly, why?

"You are to obey this one's orders within the three years. You will be treated as this one's mistress and will be allowed a certain amount of money to purchase things you'll fancy. You will be protected, fed and clothed by the Western Palace."

Kazubana stared at him, her mouth open in shock. He was giving her more than she could ever hope to get as a daughter of a teahouse.

"You will be allowed to leave this pavilion in company of a guard, you will be provided an escort if you desire to venture outside of the palace walls, but you will have to get this one's permission for that," he continued, his voice monotone. "Parts of the agreement can be discussed upon your acceptance."

"My lord, this sounds too much for a simple girl like me," she dared to voice her shock and doubt. "What is it that you'll get from this?"

She bit her bottom lip and squeezed her fists. Surely there was a price for all this comfortable life he was offering her. What was he wanted from her? His golden eyes looked at her for a moment before he replied, calm and unyielding.

"You are allowed to enter this one's chambers if you so please," he replied, "You will be required to accompany this one during parties and on some of his travels. And you will be allowed to choose to stay at this one's side after the three years."

She almost laughed at her silliness, he had told her she'd be treated as his mistress. But his words and tone told her he didn't expect that of her. And... Really, as a daughter of a teahouse she'd have to lay with a man anyway. She bit her bottom lip, trying to figure out why he had decided to offer her this opportunity to be lifted to such position. She was sure there were many more beautiful and stronger women dreaming about being in her place.

She lifted her gaze to look at him and found him standing, so she quickly stood up too, it'd be rude to sit where a noble stood.

"You have three days to make your choice," he stated and turned to leave.

"My lord, wait!" she almost reached a hand to grasp the sleeve of his kimono. "What... What if I refuse?"

She dreaded the answer for this question, but she had to ask. He looked back at her without surprise, as if he had expected this question,

"You will be free to leave immediately," he said before exiting the garden, leaving the girl staring after him with confused feelings, part of them not hers, swirling in her heart.

.

Sesshomaru didn't look back. The girl - Kazubana - she looked so much like Kagura and at the same was different. She lacked the bitter smell Kagura had carried with herself, she smelled warm and innocent. He wondered if he was now feeling what Inuyasha had felt when he had met his mate. He had smelled her as soon as he entered the room and he had hoped she'd remember after taking her old fan. But it seemed she was unaware of her past self, but he wasn't sure if he wanted her to. Kagura's life had been full of pain, bitterness and fear. He wantted something different from that for Kazubana. If she accepted his offer, that is.

He could only hope that she'd decide to stay and that they could build something similar to the bond his half-breed brother shared with his miko.

Speaking of his half brother, it was time to start the preparations for the pledge of loyalty. Lord Sesshomaru smirked, he couldn't wait to see the shocked looks on faces of some of his court men upon seeing their new Inu no Taisho. And he couldn't wait to see him pummeling their faces for insulting the imperial line of their noble and terrifying lord father. 


	4. Afternoon Tea

A/N: Thank you all for reviewing and liking this story! You don't even know how much it means to me to see that my stuff (that is usually on the cracky side) is pleasant to read! Thank you for all your support, patience and love!

* * *

 **Afternoon Tea**

* * *

Kazubana was walking down a corridor. A petite inu youkai girl was following her, her servant and guide through the wast expanse of the Western Palace and the gardens surrounding her.

Kazu was walking on silent feet, happy that her lord kept his promise from the previous day - she was free to roam the palace, rarely forbidden to enter a room. She didn't mind that, she was a new inhabitant of the palace, there were secrets that had to be veiled from her.

Mai, the black-haired inu youkai who was assigned to serve her, was quietly answering all her question and leading her to all the places Kazu wanted to. The shy girl reminded her of Hana and that made her feel a sense of familiarity in this place that was so different from the teahouse. Kazu wasn't used to have a personal servant, nor did he want one, but she hoped she could be friends with the inu.

The parts of the teahouse available for the guests were lovely, but in comparison to the splendor of the Western Palace the teahouse's flashy decor paled. The building was joining both Japanese traditions and Chinese luxury in a perfect blend of magnificence and stunning beauty. Kazu felt like she was dreaming and in her dream visiting the palaces of the gods in their heavenly realm. Every room simply shouted of wealth, good taste and power, the crest of the White Inu house that ruled this land, embroider or carved almost wherever she looked. Plants from far countries were filling the gardens with their beauty and sweet scents, along with a wide plethora of Japanese flora - there were whole alleys shadowed by cherry trees or maples with leaves glistering in the sunlight. Small waterfalls were worked into the streams that cut through the gardens, connecting some of the ponds scattered around the area, filling the air with soft music.

Her own room was much more luxurious than the room she had shared with her sisters at the teahouse. According to Mai there were rooms much more magnificent that hers, but Kazu couldn't stop feeling overwhelmed by the generosity of the lord that let her live in that big, lovely room. The previous day she had been getting accustomed to her quarters in the Tiger Lily Pavilion, that was assigned to be the home for the lord's concubines, should he choose any. According to Mai she was the only lady brought there by the lord in almost two decades and that there were never many that had been given the honor of being choose.

This part of the palace was surrounded by its own garden and a tall wall, but the guards at the gate never stopped Kazu on her way in or out, so she felt free to explore the whole palace during the day.

And the people who walked those halls and garden paths all were wearing colorful, rich robes, often with armor and weapons, even women carried some. They were giving her curious sniffs and looks when she passed by, but none approached her. She was grateful for that, because she felt very anxious about talking to any of the court members. Still, it also made her feel as an outcast, many talks fading as she passed, hushed whispers reaching her ears, too faint to recognize words.

Kazu wasn't surprised by that. She was a novelty, a girl of unknown origin that had came to the palace the other night. They didn't know her and her place in the society, in the court.

And she didn't know it either. Mai was referring to her as her lady, as were other servants of the pavilion. To a girl raised to be an artist amusing guests in the teahouse the respectful bows of the servants were a bit unnerving. The guards were treating her with the same respect. They were suspecting her role, after all she was the sole inhabitant of the Tiger Lily Pavilion. But Kazu knew that she wasn't the lord's concubine, at least not until she choose to be.

If she had to be honest with herself - and she usually was - she would like to live in luxury, not caring about food and clothing, cleaning or other things. Thee years spent in the palace didn't sound bad. She missed her sisters, sweet Hana and others were now beyond her reach. She doubted the Western Lord's companion could just go and visit a teahouse. She felt her stomach squeeze as she thought about her friends and teachers. They weren't her blood family, but over the years she had spent with them she grew to care deeply for some of them. Maybe the lord would let her write to them? She also hoped she would make friends in the palace.

And, even if she didn't really know the lord, from Kagura's memories stored in her fan, she knew that he was a honorable man, one she would like to know better. Kagura had had a pretty... intimate knowledge of the Western Lord.

"What's wrong, my lady? Should I bring you something to drink, you look flushed?" asked the ever watchful Mai when Kazubana stopped in the middle of a garden patch.

"Oh!" the wind youkai pressed her hands to her cheeks, embarrassed at the blush that now only deepened. "Can you bring me some green tea, please?" her eyes darted around and she spotted a bench under an old maple. "I'll wait for you there."

"As you wish, my lady," the inu dashed away and Kazu sighed in relief before making her way to the bench where she sat.

Kazubana had dared to open the fan the previous night, but hadn't been overwhelmed by visions again. Still, she had had the most... interesting dream that night, one featuring a hot spring, the inu lord and herself wrapped in his mokomoko. She had felt every caress of the lush fur against naked skin. She had felt emotions and desires that she couldn't untangle and straighten.

Now, in the broad daylight, she knew that all those emotions, urges and feelings, all those visions, were memories of the other owner of the fan, that Kagura woman. They were now but fuzzy images, but still managed to deepen her blush and make her feel too warm and wishing for a breeze to cool her. How was she supposed to look at the cool lord and not remember one of Kagura's memories?

Without thinking she took her fan out of the bright blue obi she wore and opened it with a snap. The air swirled as she sent a tiny spark of her youki through the fan to command the wind. Cool waves of air hit her flushed skin and Kazubana sighed.

She had found that the fan was no ordinary tool, the first time she had waved it, the fan had answered to her youki and for some strange reason Kazu had felt at that moment like she had found something she had been lacking and haven't been aware of it. It also retained the memories of its previous owner, showing them to Kazubana. She doubled most youkai artifacts had this power and wondered why she was given those visions. Since the lord was the one who had given her the fan, Kazu hoped he could also provide some information about it. Kazu gulped, realizing that, yes, she had to talk to the Western Lord and tell him about Kagura's memories.

"My lady, here's your tea," Kazu opened her eyes and saw Mei standing with a silver tray, housing a porcelain cup adorned with blue flowers ad a tea pot shaped like an exotic bird with long neck. The servant put the tray beside Kazubana and poured the tea into the cup before offering it to her with both hands and a little bow.

Kazubana smiled and accepted the drink. 'Not too long ago I was practicing to do just that,' she thought.

"Thank you," she said softly. She could get used to this life, the luxury of the palace. It was something she would love to explore.

And even the memories of Kagura, that the fan seeped into her, for some reason didn't feel weird or unsettling. They were like watching a play or rather reading a story written so skillfully that you could experience the feelings of the heroine of the tale.

While drinking her tea and watching colorful birds flying between trees, Kazubana thought that she understood Kagura's feelings, at least some of them. From what she had gathered the other wind youkai had been a woman enslaved, forced to do things she had despised, fight battles she hadn't cared for. She had longed for freedom, just like Kazubana not too long ago. She had tried to make the best of her situation and she had learned to fight for herself, even if it meant pain and death. She had used the fan to channel her youki and fight, a true lady of great grace, but also formidable warrior.

Kazubana shivered and hurriedly took a sip of the warm tea, bitter and strong. Kagura had been a woman of passion, of action, of daring and Kazubana hoped she could one day be as assertive, as strong willed as that wind youkai. She had played a game, where the prize was freedom, she had lived and loved, betrayed and taunted and now Kazubana felt less lost and confused in the Western Palace, because the other woman's memories gave her hope she, Kazubana, could be just as strong and daring, beautiful and witty as she had been.

A/N: Soon we will get some action. We will also learn what Kazu will choose. And the new Great General is somewhere out there, along with his pack.


	5. Evening Juice

A/N: Thank you for all the lovely comments! I'm so happy you enjoy the story so far!

* * *

 **Evening Juice**

* * *

Kazubana was reading a book of poems, trying to relax a bit. It was the evening of her second day in the Western Palace and she knew she had to choose the next day. Lord Sesshomaru hadn't approached her since their meeting by the pond the first day and she had glimpsed him only once while wandering the palace.

Now she was sitting by the same pond, trying to figure out the answer to his proposition.

He had offered her freedom, leaving her to choose for herself what she wanted. It was the first time in her life she could decide for herself on something so important. In the past there had always been Mother Mi to order her to do something, there had been older sisters to listen to. Now, in the garden of the Tiger Lily Pavilion, she was faced by the knowledge that she had to choose and deal with the consequences of her own actions.

It was exhilirating. And a bit scary, but mostly exciting.

She could stay and play the role of the lord's companion for three years, living in splendor, attending parties, submerging herself in the world of nobles. Then, after three years, she could choose to remain or leave. Or she could leave right now, wander the world, like wind experiencing no boundaries, not being held back by responsibiliies or duties.

The thought of leaving, soaring over the wast lands, tall mountains and sea was making her body quiver. She always had longed to be free, not trapped in the teahouse, not bound to the ground. But... She didn't feel contained in the Western Palace, it was nothing like her previous life. As the lord's companion she still could travel wherever she wanted, although with an escort and after getting his permission - a sensible condition when one thought about it.

She knew many females and some males would've killed to be offered such a choice, jumping on a chance to live a comfortable life. Getting to know the daiyoukai could also bring profit to them, even if their stay in the palace would be temporary. But Kazu, even if she liked the luxury and appreciated the beauty of the palace, didn't care much for possessions. After all, until now, she hadn't had valuable things. Now she had her fan, that had to be a very special artifact, but that was all. She didn't crave lands or titles, privilliges or influence over the court.

She desired freedom and wanted to see the world. Getting stronger wouldn't be bad as well. As a daughter of a teahouse she hadn't been expected to be powerful or a skilled fighter. But she knew that if she wanted to travel the country she had to be able to protect herself. Would be she allowed to train as Lord Sesshomaru's mistress? Would he think she wanted to harm him?

Kazubana chuckled at the mere thought of herself harming anyone, not mentioning the great lord. She knew the previous owner of her fan had utilized it as a weapon, but she was perfectly sure that if she tried to do that the effect would be laughable.

She looked at the sky when she felt a wave of youki. A huge white canine leaped out of the clouds hanging over the palace and landed somewhere behind the garden wall. The youkai moved so fast that Kazubana had only a second to behold its sleek shape before it was obscured by the wall. Maybe she could have a chance to talk to him?

She'd really like to get to know him for herself, not by the memories of Kagura.

He hadn't approached her, but maybe he wouldn't mind if she came to him now? It was late and the palace seemed to be tranquil, there shouldn't be any task he had to perform. So, maybe, he wouldn't object to answering her questions. After all, he seemed a pragmatic, logical person, it made sense for her to ask for some details before agreeing or not to their deal.

Kazu walked towards the passageway in the wall, but it was locked. With a groan she looked up the stones and then around herself. She plucked a small flower off of the nearest bush and tossed it on the wind after infusing it with her youki. The flower pulsed and grew to the size that could house her petite body between the silk petals. As soon as she stepped on the center of the flower it floated upwards and she crossed the barrier in no time.

On the ground again, she put the flower behind her ear while looking around. She found herself in another garden. While the one blonging to the Tiger Lily Pavillion was full of fragnant flowers, ornamental bushes and slender trees this one was different. It looked more like a barely tamed wild forest than a garden, with old oaks and pines. There were no ornamental bridges over little streams connecting ponds, but there were serene alcoves hidden behind rough trunks of wide trees For a second Kazu felt as if she was back home, sneaking out to wander through the woodlands around the teahouse. Then she noticed a glimpse of white through the trees and almost ran in that direction, intent on reaching the lord before he retired to his private quarters, where she didn't dare to walk. According to the rumors dog youkai were very intent on keeping their dens private.

She stopped on the edge of the biggeerst meadow hidden in the forest-like garden and laid her eyes on the magnificent white canine, its ears floppy, its tail curled in coils to avoid getting twigs in uts thick fur. There was a servant standing in front of the dog with a tray containing a cup and a jug. The old otter youkai turned her head to look at Kazubana with shocked expression on her face, but Kazu didn't notice, too busy looking at the golden eyed canine.

Now, from so close, she finally realized her mistake. She shouldn've came to this garden. Now it was too late to go away, after being noticed, She cursed her lack of training and haste, that had caused the mistake. Her red eyes didn't even blink as the canine disappeared in a pulse of youki, leaving the humanoid form standing where the dog had been before.

"Rei," said the woman in purple robe, tilting her head and causing her twin pony tails to sway behind her back. "I do hope you brought two cups, it looks like I have a guest."

"Yes, Honoeable Lady Mother," the servant produced a cup from her sleeve. "I hoped that the lord would notice your arrival and come to greet you, but it looks like he wasn't the fastest one this time."

"It's quite alright," the inu youkai smirked. "I'm sure he will soon come. In the meantime... Hello, young one. Would you like to join this one for a cup of juice?"

Kazubana reached a hand towards her mouth to cover her hanging jaw and pale cheeks, pinned to the spot where she stood by a pair of cool golden eyes so similar to the Western Lord's.

A/N: Ooops!


	6. Midnight Sake

A/N: Thank you for all the lovely comments! I'm so happy you enjoy the story so far! Hope you will like this chapter!

* * *

 **Midnight Sake**

* * *

Kazubana wanted to flee, but her feet were rooted to the ground. She felt as if she would never flat again, not even with all the strength of her youki. A cold rock was in her belly, weighting her, anchoring her to the spot on the edge of garden meadow, just in front of the woman to which Rei the otter had referred as 'Honorable Lady Mother'. The feeling of cold numbness engulfed her as the realization that it was Lord Sesshomaru's mother standing in front of her sunk in.

What was she supposed to do now? If she wanted to survive the night, not mentioning live in the palace or leave it alive. Kazubana had heard rumors and stories about the inu lady standing in front of her and none spoke of merciful, gentle female. The people of the West nicknamed her 'The Formidable Sky Empress' while people from other lands and those who didn't value their lives called her 'Alpha Bitch'.

An telegenic brow was raised at her and Kazubana swallowed, realizing she had to do or say something. Without thinking she did the first thing that came to her mind after fleeing - she bowed deeply, as if in front of an esteemed guest.

"My deepest apologies, my lady," she said in a soft voice, trying to sound and act as polite as possible so she wouldn't offend the inu. "I didn't want to disturb you, I came here by a mistake."

"Ah, but you surely don't wish to abandon me, when the heavens brought you before my eyes," the great lady smirked, Kazubana was pretty certain the woman could smell her fright. "After all, you are one of the reasons I descended to the Western Palace. So, humor me and don't flee, young one. Tell me your name and have no fear, for I don't desire to harm you tonight."

At this Kazu felt her muscles relax, she even dared to stand up from her bow, but still kept her gaze downcast.

"I... I can stay for a while, I suppose, if my lady wishes this of me," she managed after a moment.

"Call me Lady Kimiko, young one," the inu offered and gestured to the grass near her seat. "Come and drink with me. I wish to learn about the girl my son brought from his travels."

The young wind youkai approached the great lady and sat on the soft grass with easy grace of her kind, still more than a bit uneasy.

Rei expertly poured the juice into the cups and offered them to the Lady, who handed one to Kazu. Then she seemingly left the area, but Kazu suspected the old servant was waiting for her mistress to call her not very far away. She didn't have much time to think of the old otter, since the Lady put the cup in her hands and inquired about her name.

"I'm Kazubana," Kazu said with a fierce blush on her cheeks. How a great embarrassment - in the teahouse no one of the guests ever asked about her name, nor names of other training girls. Only the older daughters, who were already trained and were often requested, were known by name by outsiders. But here, Kazu supposed, some things were to be different, especially if she accepted the lord's deal and became his companion. After all the female accompanying the Lord of the West wouldn't remain nameless for long.

"Ah, such a fitting name for a little wind flower," the inu praised and Kazu felt herself blush. To hide her embarrassment she took a sip of the juice. She have never drank anything like it, at first it was sweet, but then almost burning on her tongue. As soon as her cup was empty Rei returned to refill it, just like the lady's, who seemed to quite enjoy the drink. Kazubana guessed it was probably a rare delicacy and she should be grateful she was allowed to drink it in presence of the Lady Mother.

It took almost no time for the inu lady to coax Kazubana into telling her her story. Kazubana was a bit surprised how easy it became to talk to the lady, how relaxed she felt now around the formidable female, who had a playful smile on her face as she watched her drink the juice and tell the story of an orphan with no memories of her past, who had been taken in by a teahouse just to be brought to the Western Palace by the lord for reasons still unclear to Kazu. Then the lady asked a few questions and she did her best to answer them, even if she felt drowsy out of a sudden.

"Little Kazubana," Kazu lifted her gaze from where she was staring into her half-empty cup. Lady Kimiko was looking at her with a warm smile and Kazu thought she was the most beautiful youkai female ever. Not even the crane youkai, who were said to be exceptionally fair, could measure up to her radiance and elegance. "Tell, did you already make your choice?"

"Maybe," Kazu giggled and lifted her cup to empty it. It was almost to her mouth when suddenly the air around cracked and a string of youki whip shattered the vessel in her hand. She gasped and looked where a strong youki was swirling not too far from them.

On the edge of the meadow stood him, the man that held power over this land, who was a living legend, who was the most handsome youkai in existence. Kazubana forgot about the juice staining the front of her kimono, too busy staring and blinking to focus on him as he walked towards then. He looked miffed, his eyes focusing on his mother for a moment before turning her way. Was he angry with her for meeting his mother? But she was so nice, so understanding...

"My lord!" Without thinking Kazu jumped to her feet to bow in front of the lord, but as soon as she stood on her feet the world around her spun madly and he contours of everything around her became blurry. For the first time in her life Kazubana stumbled.

The last thing she remembered was the warmth of something extremely fluffy and warm, smelling of acid and dog as it supported her body before it could hit the ground.

* * *

 **Tag**

* * *

He wouldn't lie, he liked to run. There was something in feeling the ground under his feet flying back, his own strength pushing his forward with every bound and leap, faster and faster. Insults couldn't be heard in the wind whistling around him as he ran, tangling his mane. Fears, insecurities and doubts had no place in his mind as he ran, for he was focusing on the elation that was the speed and freedom. The knowledge of his strength and agility was always blazing and he never felt worthless or a half of what he should've been when he was running.

Whenever he ran his mind was clean, open and speeding forward, never lingering on what had been or what could have been. There was only the present and the future towards which he was running.

There were many reasons to run - as a kid he had ran from danger, then also from his own loneliness and emptiness in his heart. Then, when he had met Kagome and the others he had learned to run for different reasons - to playfully chase,to mock bicker with humans who barely could keep up with him jogging beside them, to protect and support others, to be on the head of their pack, leading them. After meeting Kagome he was never a stray dog running alone.

But above all other reasons he loved the runs that ended with a certain bizarre miko wrapped in his arms, laughing like crazy and trying in vain to push away his tickling fingers. As she laughed and squealed, never for a second fearing the abomination hanyou, his soul felt as if it was healing. Eventually, when it lasted for a while, he would join her, laughing with all his heart, his fangs on the display, his body practically tingling with that easy feeling he could name.

Inuyasha smirked when he thought about the poor victim of his deft hands. She was somewhere in the forest ahead of him, running and tripping over tree roots and ditches as she jumped from a meadow to a meadow, following animal paths and - he could already hear it - giggling. His ears perked up and he increased the pace of his steps.

He could smell her too, the whole forest seemed to be full of the scent of the girl he chased. It was making him feel alive and light as never before. At the same time he wanted to speed up and slow down to prolong the game.

He approached the spot where she hid, behind a thick tree. He almost called out to her, telling her that hiding was stupid. But instead he decided to stalk forward, circling the tree, slowly advancing. The corner of his mouth twitched when he saw her sleeve. Without wasting another minute he pounced...

...And pulled the thick outer shirt Kagome had had on when they had started the game off of a branch. He blinked at the garment. The next moment his ears twitched and he was tackled to the ground by an assault from the side. He rolled a few times with the attacker and landed on his back, the giggling girl straddling his waist. Without a preamble she reached towards his ribs.

It didn't take long for Inuyasha's booming laughter to fill the forest, followed by happy giggles of a girl who refused to be the youkai's prey today.


	7. Dawn Potion

A/N: Goodness, it took ages and I worry it's not as good as it should be, sorry for that..

* * *

 **Dawn Potion**

* * *

Her head was so heavy and it seemed that the world was spinning without her even opening her eyes. She didn't know why she was feeling this way, but she felt heavy and her muscle ached. She took a deep breath, breathing always helped her clear her mind and feel better.

The smells of her room, tiger lilies in the garden outside, the green tea freshly brewed...

...And youki so strong it could choke to death lesser youkai if it wasn't concealed and restrained by will of iron.

With a gasp Kazubana sat up, her eyes snapping open as she focused at the pale figure under a wall. Then, almost at the same time, with a pained groan, the girl collapsed back on the futon, covering her eyes with the sleeve of her robe, shielding herself from the piercing, blinding sunlight. Her head hurt as if kicked by a youkai horse. She whimpered and curled into herself in a vain attempt to feel better.

"This one apologized on behalf of his most esteemed mother," the voice of the man was calm and sounded much closer than it should be, judging by the spot where he had been sitting just a moment ago. Kazubana dared to peek one eye from under her sleeve to see the daiyoukai kneeling by her futon with a cup of green tea in hand. His golden eyes held concern, even if his face seemed as stoic as a stone statue. "Drink this tea, it will soothe the pain."

"What... What did happen?" Kazubana asked, carefully sitting up and pulling her blanket close to herself before reaching both hands for the cup. To her relief she was dressed in her night robe - it wasn't the most proper attire to be in around a daiyoukai, but she guessed it couldn't be helped, he was already in her bedchamber. She was looking at him through half-lidded eyes and trying not to wince at the white of his robe, fur and hair. She had enough brain to know better than to accuse his mother of poisoning her, but she felt it wasn't far from truth. "Lady Kimiko and I talked and she gave me some juice.."

She glanced to his face to see his reaction. Then she froze because he did one thing that many deemed the most terrible - he smirked.

"The juice this one's mother gave you is called the Night Nectar."

Kazubana almost dropped her cup of tea. The name he spoke belonged to one of the strongest youkai alcoholic beverages. Her shocked face made his smirk grow.

"Some people dare to joke that while in this one's blood flows the strongest poison, making this one immune to venom and poisons, this one's mother's blood grants her the strongest head," he said. "Most of the youkai of the court are wise enough not to drink anything with her, unless they want to find themselves with a huge headache the next day. Even this one's great sire never drank with her."

Kazubana looked into her cup and carefully drank a sip. It was like a blessing to her dry tongue and throat. She winced when she realized she barely could taste the aromatic drink.

"I guess I learned this lesson the hard way," she muttered and pouted a little at her own naive silliness. Of course the court would be a potentially dangerous place and if she wanted to stay there she had to be clever and not anyone else cause her the fist and worst hangover of her life. She glanced up at the lord again through her lashes, partially expecting a scolding for her lack of thinking.

"My lord...?" she breathed out when she saw an uncharacteristic soft look in his eyes, accompanied by a little smile that had been a smirk just a minute ago.

"This one finds you wearing your hair down lovely," he said even more quietly, barely a whisper.

"Oh..." Kazu blushed and her gaze dropped down immediately. "Thank you, my lord..."

"Hm,' he hummed and stood up to leave. He was halfway towards the door when Kazu looked up.

"My lord?" she dared to call softly, not daring to raise her voice so not to make her headache return after fading under the blessing of the tea. He stopped and looked back at her. Kazu gripped her cup tighter and spoke again, stumbling over her words, but refusing to stop to think over them, afraid her courage could disappear. "May I... I mean, if it's not an inconvenience for you... Could you stay for a while longer? I'd like to talk to you a bit, if you don't mind, my lord."

Of course, she knew this request was outrageous. He, the western daiyoukai, was a mighty lord, probably having many things to do, spending time with a low girl like herself would probably be a waste of his time.

Still, he had waited for her to wake up and he wanted her to be his companion for three years, so it looked like he wanted to spend time with her... She wondered if it was because she was a wind youkai like Kagura, and that she had Kagura's fan. Was he aware she had seen some of Kagura's memories? Should she tell him?

Kazu realized a pair of bare feet stopped in front of her and glanced up to see that the man she was thinking about stood just beside her futon. She bit her bottom lip and watched him sink to a comfortable seated position, his whole body turned sideways from her as he crossed his legs and looked out of the opened shoji to the garden.

"Are you sure you're up to a conversation?" he inquired after a moment, his voice serious. Kazu hurriedly drank the rest of her tea and gave a small nod.

"I'll be fine. Thank you for the tea," she assured him. She was at the same time happy to see that he stayed, but also anxious and unsure about what she should talk to him. She put the cup beside the futon and froze when she noticed the length of white fur piled up behind the man that looked lost in thought and mesmerized by the tiger lilies swaying on the wind. The tip of the fur tail fluffed out as if it felt the closeness of her hand and without thinking she smoothed it.

A soft, but sharp inhale brought Kazu back to her senses and she snatched her hand back, looking up to see the pair of stunning yellow eyes looking straight at her.

"Forgive me!" she gasped and bowed her head. "I didn't mean to..."

The eyes blinked and turned back towards the garden. The man said nothing, but when Kazu dared to glance back at the splendor of the fur it was even more fluffed out, as if challenging her to smooth it down again. She resisted the desire to touch the white softness. It belonged to one of the most powerful daiyoukai alive it was better not to play with it.

Still, she felt a bit less anxious afterwards, relaxing a little in the presence of the lord, who remained motionless and silent.

"When I went to see Lady Kimiko yesterday," Kazu started after sitting more comfortably on her futon and making sure she looked as decent as one dressed in a plain kosode and covered by a blanket could. He didn't move a muscle, but somehow she knew he was listening. "I actually wanted to find you. I... I saw her and assumed that this huge, magnificent dog had to be you, my lord."

"This one was out of the palace," he said simply and Kazu nodded. He didn't have to explain himself to her in any way, after all he was free to do whatever he wanted.

"I wanted to ask if it could be possible for me to... To train fighting, if I stayed," Kazubana said it all almost without any spaces between words. "I mean... I never had to fight before, but I thought that if I want to travel now and see the world... Could I get a teacher to show me how to utilize the fan you gave me?"

"Does that man you will stay?" his voice was emotionless as always, but she noticed that his mokomoko's tip twitched like the tail of an aggravated cat.

"I..."

At first she wanted to say that she still wasn't sure, after all she still had time. But then she thought how easily she got herself drunk and how thoughtless of her it was to approach Lady Kimiko like she had done.

"Would it be worth it?" she asked instead of reminding him she had still a whole day. "I'm not accustomed to living in the court, I'm just a low girl with no power., no ties to noble clans, nothing special. What will you gain from having me in the palace? Won't I just cause trouble to you, my lord?"

Those were the questions she wanted him to answer the most - what was the reason for him to pick her over any other? She balled her fists under her blanket, forgetting about her aching body and head, just listening to his quiet breathing and waiting for him to speak.

"You smell like a meadow after a storm," he said after a long while. "And you are right, if you stay in the palace, you will be trained both in the matter of fighting and the ways of the court. You are young and led a different life, so it will take some adjusting, but this one thinks that you are capable of doing that. As to this one's reasons - they are of little relevance right now. Know that I mean you no harm."

Kazu was about to say something, ask another question, but just as she opened her mouth, she heard a light tap and the door of her room opened, revealing Mai. The poor servant's bright smile turned in a look of utter terror when she spotted the lord casualty sitting by the bedding containing her barely dressed mistress. With a gasp Mai bent to the floor in a deep bow..

"This one will leave you in your maid's hands," Kazu, started by the black inu, looked up to the silver one standing over her again. "He has affairs to attend to, but he will find you before sundown. This will be the end of the third day."

With that and without waiting for her reply, the lord strode out of the room to the garden, where he disappeared behind the corner of the building. Kazu didn't have to wait long for curious Mai looking up from her bow, her eyes shining with hundreds of questions. The young wind youkai just fell back on her pillow.

.

The daiyoukai of the western inu was walking on the rooftop, which was not too unlike him. It helped to move between parts of the Western Palace without being noticed, because not many youkai bothered to look up while walking down the courtyards.

He had much work to do, with his little brother's arrival today. And he wanted to make a good impression, not only because there were other lords to come and witness the oath of the new Inu no Taisho. He supposed some wanted to challenge him and see if the West was really so weak to give the title to a half-breed.

A small smirk appeared on his lips. The day was going to be fun. Where fun meant maiming or death of idiots who deemed him stupid for acknowledging his brother's powers and abilities as a fighter. And at the sundown he was going to see Kazubana again, hopefully in a better shape after drinking with his mother.

He remembered how he carried the unconscious girl to her room and took care of her. It reminded him of times when his human ward Rin had been a little girl, often falling asleep in the coils of his mokomoko. The wind youkai seemed to hold a similar fondness towards his tail, because she had clung to it t tonight. And today she had dared to stroke it, a thing not many dared to do in his lifetime and survived to tell the tale. He wondered if he could goad her into stroking it again.

"Someone looks extra fuzzy today," spoke someone in a playful voice and a moment later Lady Kimiko descended from above to stand on the rooftop near her son. "It looks like the tea with my blood helped to nurse your tiger lily to better health?"

"Hm," Sesshomaru replied, not stopping to chat with his mother. She joined him, walking with agility and grace. "This one has no use of you meddling in this one's affairs. Especially today."

"Oh, my son, you know that I have only the good of the West in mind, and your happiness. I just want to see the other son of your father before I go home."

"Hm," was all he said in reply before turning his attention to a commotion near the eastern gate of the palace. His little brother's barking could be heard all the way from there.

A/N: Does grabbing the mokomoko counts as groping? What will be Kazu's final answer? What will happen next?


	8. Morning Water

**Morning Water**

* * *

Kazubana sighed in bliss when she slid into the hot water in the bathtub. She closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of the warmth seeping into her body after the cool wash she had endured just a minute ago.

She could sense the eyes of Mai returning to her every so often while the servant was cleaning the stool and the soaps after the wash. The bathroom was not very big, hidden in a separate building hidden in a bamboo groove. Its stone floor was slightly tilted to let the water from rinsing flow towards the back where it could feed the bamboo. There were cabinets for towels, fresh yukatas and various soaps and oils. There was a maid who took care of this place and was supposed to aid the bathing lady in her ablution, but Mai had never let anyone else help Kazu in her daily washing.

Even now she was the only one keeping Kazu's company. And, as much as Kazu appreciated the silent presence of her inu maid, who was always so keen on making her life comfortable, the wind youkai was growing embarrassed and annoyed with Mai's staring.

'I can't blame her,' Kazu thought and sank to her nose in the hot scented water filling her huge tub. 'She came to wake me up and found me in bed, with Lord Sesshomaru sitting next to me.' Mai had said nothing after Lord Sesshomaru's departure, but her eyes were following Kazu's every motion, curiosity and a bit of wonder in her eyes.

A wave of youki washed over the bath house, a soft touch announcing someone approaching without trying to intimidate or scare away, just alert to someone's presence. Still, the power was impressive.

Kazubana, wiser after her previous night, focused on the youki to try to deduce who it was. The answer to this question made her almost unable to feel the heat of the water.

"The Honorable Lady Mother wishes to speak to Lady Kazubana," Kazu heard the voice of Rei, who seemed to be Lady Kimiko's personal maid. The voice came from just outside the doorway.

"Ah, my lady takes a bath," Mai said, obviously the black inu had exited the bath house to talk to the visitors without disturbing her mistress. "If the Formidable Sky Empress will allow it I will fetch my lady and she will come to you in no time..."

"That won't be necessary, Mai," Lady Kimiko's voice sounded a bit amused, but kind. "This one would like to talk to your lady without a delay and thinks that, since we're already friends, your lady won't be offended if this one joined her."

Kazubana gasped when she heard that and looked around the small room in panic, but there was no way out and the silver inu lady was already stepping into the bathroom. She took a deep breath and tried to look calm and serene, just like a lady should in such a situation.

"Lady Kimiko..." she started to stand up to bow to the newcomer, but Lady Kimiko waved a hand at her.

"Don't stand up, dear." she said and smiled. "It's good to see you in a good shape today. Usually my friends end up retiring for at least a whole day to their chambers after sharing a cup with me."

As she spoke the two servants quickly undressed her and she sat on the small stool to get soaped and rinsed. She was beautiful, her body shapely and pale, seemingly fragile. Kazu looked away when the silver-haired woman slipped into her tub, thinking that in comparison to her she herself looked even more unassuming.

"I... I feel well, thank you, my lady," she said awkwardly. She was used to sharing baths with her sisters - it had been a fun time, full of giggles and playful teasing. Nothing like sitting in the same tub with probably the most powerful woman in the land. Who was the mother of the lord who had paid Kazu's debt.

"You have nothing to fear from me," the silver inu spoke, ignoring the two servants tidying the floor, sweeping the water off of it with willow brooms. Kazu looked up to find the golden eyes of the noble lady. "My son told me about the deal he had offered you."

"Oh... That's good..." Kazu muttered, looking down at the steaming water.

"If you decide to stay you will have to face a different world than the one you knew. It will be a world of great possibilities, but also deadly dangers, and not only to you. If you want to follow my son you will have to be brave, strong and cunning. My son is building an empire, little one. You can't weight him down, you have to be the wind that fills his sails when he needs it and a breeze to cool his temper. If you can't be that you should leave. You must know what you wand and reach for it, unless you want to spend your days regretting lost chances."

Kazu felt a lump forming in her throat. In her own way the great lady was trying to give her an advice, even if her words were sharp and tone cool. She should be grateful.

"I... Thank you, my lady," she whispered and licked her dry lips. "I... I'm not a strong youkai like you, not of noble birth..."

"True," Lady Kimiko nodded and then smirked a wide grin. "You know, Inu no Taisho once told me that the best plums grow on the highest branches of a plum tree. It doesn't matter from where you jump and how many jumps you have to make to reach them, they taste wonderful every time. I guess he really liked food."

After saying that the inu stood up. The otter quickly came to help her exit the tub and brought soft towels to dry her lady before, with Mai's help, putting her clothes back on.

"See you later, Kazubana," the lady said and waved her hand before leaving the stunned girl alone with her maid. Mai waited for a moment before approaching the tub and looking at her young mistress.

"My lady?" she asked softly. Kazu looked up at her and smiled softly.

"I'm alright. The Formidable Sky Empress gave me much to think about," she said and stood up, ready to leave the cooling bath water.

She felt much better after the soak and Lady Kimiko's words made her think more about future and what exactly she wanted to achieve. As she walked back to her room to dress for the day Kazu reached in her obi and retrieved her fan to snap it open and wave a soft breeze against her cheeks, only her thoughtful eyes visible over the edge of the fan.

When Sesshomaru arrived at the gate there was already a small crowd of curious court men, servants and guards gathered. His brother and his mate stood in the center of the wide circle, the miko holding her hands in her sleeves, seemingly not noticing the youkai. Her mate... Well...

"Take if you dare," Inuyasha glared at the guard standing in front of him, brandishing the transformed Tessaiga in front of himself.

"This one would prefer you didn't obliterate the gate," Sesshomaru said as he landed gracefully on the ground a few paces away from he hanyou.

"My lord! The hanyou refuses to leave his weapon by the gate," the guard reported, a tone of supplication in his voice. Inuyasha glared.

"That was to be expected," Sesshomaru glanced around to see everyone looking at him. They were waiting for their lord to order the guards to deal with the half-breed or do it himself. Some probably were itching to attack the hanyou, but weren't sure what the miko would do. Kagome, despite standing in a relaxed pose, did little to hide her aura of powerful priestess.

He was quite surprised no one from the gathering recognized the sword. They were simple guards, lower court men and servants, but such a famous blade, one belonging once to their lord... It was either they had never seen his father use Tessaiga or they would never think a half-breed could wield it and thought it was but a copy. He smirked a little and caught the miko's eyes. He blinked. She winked.

"Let the guard try and take the sword, Inuyasha," the daiyoukai said, surprising the crowd by knowing the hanyou's name. Inuyasha glared his way, but Kagome's hand on his shoulder gave him pause.

"Keh! Try if you have to!" Inuyasha sheathed the blade and held the sheath out to the guard. The guard, a brown inu not older than Inuyasha himself, gave him a suspicious look and grabbed the offered katana.

"Let this be your punishment for not recognizing the blade," before anyone could do something that would prompt Inuyasha into pummeling the gate along with a part of the wall, Sesshomaru spoke and walked towards Inuyasha putting the sheathed sword back into his obi and the poor guard laying on the ground and cradling his burned hand. Sesshomaru knew that in a couple of hours his hand would be perfectly healed, but fur now probably felt like hell. "This sword was never held at the gate of the Western Palace and it never will. The hanyou and the miko aren't guests, but members of the household, they cam carry in any weapon they desire."

"Good day, Lord Sesshomaru," Kagome smiled and gently elbowed her smug mate. Inuyasha grumbled something under his nose, glaring sideways at the crowd which was too stunned by Sesshomaru's words to react to what was going on.

"This one shall take you to your quarters and introduce you to your servants," Sesshomaru said. It made a few people in the crowd gasp in the audience, the great lord wasn't one to give tours and lead guests, he had people to do that for him. The fact he was willing to not only let the strange couple in with their weapons, calling them members of the household, but also lead them in person, probably made some of the observers frantically trying to find some logic in what was happening.

"Keh!" Inuyasha and his mate followed after him, passing down the aisle that formed in the crowd as the daiyoukai walked. "We would've been here earlier, but we had a run in with a kappa."

"This one hopes the kappa didn't cause you any harm or distress," Sesshomaru said, looking back at the miko. She giggled. They passed through the gate to a big yard and followed a path leading westwards.

"Oh, no, not at all!" she shook her head. "But Inuyasha was most distressed when the kappa grabbed his hair and tried to pull him in the swamp. I think Inuyasha didn't leave much for the fishes!"

"Feh!" the hanyou stuffed his hands in his sleeves and looked to the side grumbling. "Stupid kappa."

Sesshomaru's mouth twitched. Yes, it was going to be interesting. And he, Sesshomaru, was going to enjoy the show.


	9. Midday Honey

A/N: I don't say it often, but there are no words to describe how much I appreciate your feedback and how elated I am that you like this and my other stories.  
As a side note - as much as I love InuKag, their story here is only a side one, so I won't be diving too much into it. Still, they are going to play some role, so yeah

* * *

 **Midday Honey**

* * *

Kazubana felt very bad. It was not because of her still present, even if not very strong, headache and sensitivity to light. It was because she was in a huge chamber among dozens of people, many of them openly staring at her.

She looked as good as a girl in her place could - with a delicate make up highlighting the paleness of her skin, the natural curve of her eyebrows and crimson of her eyes and lips, in a kimono that, in Mai's words, was making her look like a real tiger lily, delicate and vibrant, with her hair falling on her back like smooth waterfall. The problem was that she was drawing attention.

She didn't understand why they were still looking at her. After all she was in the palace for three days now and there were many other ladies present, a lot of them more beautiful or in more splendid attire.

Yet there still were whispers and looks. People seemed to put some significance to the color of her robe and she wondered what was it's meaning. She pretended to admire the beauty of the great hall it had no tatami mats on the floor, only on the raised part of the chamber, where a throne stood. From what she gathered only Sesshomaru's ministers and advisers could step up to that part of the floor and take a seat on the mats, ordinary people were to stand. Fresh air and sunlight were entering the room through the opened panels leading to a beautiful garden. Kazu stood near one of the pillars supporting one of the shoji, not too far from the raised part of the floor. She didn't want to approach anyone and just start talking, not wanting to bother anyone or say something improper.

She was looking at a huge painting behind the throne, depicting the West's vigil held up by two white dogs, when she felt someone approaching. She turned around just to see Lord Sesshomaru landing on the engawa. Without acknowledging her presence he walked by and towards the throne, his face stoic as ever. As soon as he was spotted by others gathered in the throne room silence reigned and everyone bowed to him. When he sat on the throne a small kappa in brown kimono stepped to stand in front and a bit to the lord's right.

"Be welcomed, lords and commanders of the West," he said in a squeaky voice. Kazu was surprised that this tiny, rather hideous creature, was the inu lord's retainer, but it seemed that no one was paying attention to what he was saying. That is until... "Our noble lord summoned you here for today this land will see the new Great General rise to power.."

Gasps of surprise and shock filled the air as every youkai stared towards the great lord. Kazu realized that she not only knew who the Inu no Taisho was going to be, she had seen him already.

The memory of a hanyou in red, growling up at the daiyoukai holding him by his throat flashed in her mind.

"So today you will meet him and witness him pledging his sword to the West," for some reason the kappa made an odd face, a mixture of amusement and a bit of dread. "The commanders and soldiers of the army will be swearing their loyalty to him afterwards. As is in our custom everyone who wishes to test the skills and powers of the new Inu no Taisho or compete with our lord's chosen, will be able to do this in an hour on the training field," the kappa continued, silencing everyone by hitting the end of his staff against the ground before continuing. "And when the moon rises we will have the new Great General, serving to ensure peace to the land and painful death to our enemies."

"Will you tell us who you chose, my lord?" asked a lord standing close to the throne. Kazu saw Lord Sesshomaru's eyes turn his way before the daiyoukai gave a small nod.

"Inuyasha," he said in the eerie silence of the room. "This one chose Inuyasha."

Kazu almost laughed at the puzzled looks on the nobles' faces. They had no clue who it was, probably had never heard his name. It wasn't surprising, since youkai of their power wouldn't bother to remember the name of a hanyou even if they had heard it.

"Who is he?" one of the ladies dared to ask.

"You shall see," the daiyoukai stood up. "This one shall retire to prepare himself. You all are encouraged to do the same. The new Inu no Taisho's loyalty and powers are known to this one, but he won't stop you from testing him."

Kazubana smiled when she saw a shadow of amusement on the lord's face. He was always keeping a calm face, as was expected of a daiyoukai, but he was giving little hints, if one knew where to look. And for some reason she knew.

"You look oddly not surprised," came a familiar voice from behind her and when Kazu turned to look, she saw Lady Kimiko standing in the shadow of the engawa, holding a cup in each hand. "Is it possible you already knew and saw our future General, little tiger lily?" she asked and stepped closer.

"I... Oh... I met him when I first met Lord Sesshomaru, my lady," she bowed her head, but not before looking in trepidation at the cups. Was the lady drinking already? And from two vessels?

"Ah, I see. How would you describe him?" the wind youkai dared to glance at her and found her smiling and taking a sip from her cup. "It's just honey, I'm not drinking before nightfall today. Would you like to join me again?"

"Oh... I'm sorry..." Kazu paled and tensed. Was it wise to decline such an offer? She knew it was definitely wise not to drink with Lady Kimiko. "He... He seems to be rather rough around the edges, but also caring and brave."

"Ah, I see," Lady Kimiko's smile grew and she put her cup in Kazu's hand. "I was going to give it to my son, but I guess he won't have time to drink it before the event starts. It'd be a pity for good honey to go to waste. I promise, it's just honey," she winked. "And I was just teasing you, I won't get you drunk again. Sesshomaru was pouting at me for hours."

"Oh, alright," Kazu smiled at the image of the stern lord pouting and cradled the cup in her hands. The next moment she almost dropped it, when one of the nobles talking to Lord Sesshomaru, pointed at her.

"Will the presence of that girl be explained to us?" he asked. He was a huge male, appearing as a human with pale yellow hair and muscular frame. Kazu felt eyes of every youkai in the room turning her way.

"No," Lord Sesshomaru stood up from his seat. "It's high time you go prepare yourselves."

"What? But she wears.." the lord started, but the silver inu just ignored him and left the room. Kazu found herself wishing she could flee this place too.

"As you so wisely pointed out, Lord Ken," Lady Kimiko stepped out of the shadow and smiled brightly. "The Lady Kazubana wears the robe of the inhabitant of the Tiger Lily Pavilion. It would be unwise to upset her. Especailly since this one considers her a friend."

Kazu sighed in relief when she saw the lord bow his head, accepting her words. She could hear the kappa by the throne letting go an equally relieved sigh. The crowd of high ranking youkai was still looking at her, but some of them were less suspicious. She could see some ladies were looking at her with envy, a few with pity.

"Thank you, Lady Kimiko," she whispered and saw the silver inu lady wink her way.

"Drink your honey, little flower. You're too pale and we're in for some excitement this afternoon."


	10. Afternoon Blood Pt 1

A/N: Will you be interested in a 'chapter' with the character list? I mean I don't plan to do this story a political intrigue drama to the extent where you'll have to literally make a map of ties between characters, but there will be quite a handful of non canon people running around.

This chapter will be cut in a few pieces, so I'll be adding 'part' to the title. Sorry for that, I just don't want to dump at you a 5k-words long chapter while the rest of them don't reach 2k.

* * *

 **Afternoon Blood. Pt 1**

* * *

Kazubana followed Lady Kimiko like a lost puppy. A few ladies joined the inu lady's group. Kazu found herself surrounded by fair women of various species of youkai, all dressed in colorful kimono's. As they were following Lady Kimiko to the training grounds she found herself walking beside a short female with white curly hair and dressed in pale violet kimono. When the woman noticed Kazu looking at her she offered a polite smile. While Lady Kimiko and her son were akitas this woman was of a smaller breed of inu youkai.

"It's not the right time for proper introductions, but I'm Gin." she introduced herself. "I'm responsible for the finances of the realm, so I'll greatly appreciate if you don't request too costly things."

"Gin!"exclaimed a lady behind her in a mixture of shock and amusement. "Don't talk like that to our new friend," Kazu looked her way and saw a young tanuki with brown hair tied in a bun on top of her head. She wore green kimono with a pink flower pattern. "Hello, Lady Kazubana. It's nice to see that there's a lady in the West that somehow weaseled her way in the lord's heart!"

"And how is your comment better, Lady Saki?" the inu laughed and gestured to Kazubana, who was blushing and trying to form a reply. The tanuki just giggled.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all, ladies," Kazu finally managed to string some words together. "Please, don't think that I hold sway over the lord. And I won't be a bother," she glanced at the inu, who gave a nod.

"A reasonable young lady who can hold our lord in the palace for a longer while would be a nice change," she said. The rest of the women were smiling and Kazu felt a bit less tense surrounded by them, even if she felt embarrassed by the two who actually talked to her.

As they were talking the silver inu led the whole group through various passages and corridors before exiting the palace and walking across a yard that led to a small gate guarded by two dog youkai. Outside the gate was a big field covered by sand and thin grass. The area was full of people, even more than the throne room before. Kazu supposed they all were here to witness the Inu no Taisho's fights. There was no other option, despite being chosen by the ruler the Great General had to face challenges.

People were standing or sitting on the ground or pillows supplied by their servants. A few mats were spread in the shadow of one of a few trees growing on the border of the field and Lady Kimiko led her host there. There were whispers as they went, Kazu heard once more some people turning their attention her way, but she felt more comfortable with it now. She barely knew the women around her, but for some reason the presence of Lady Kimiko helped, despite the fact that since the events in the throne room she didn't look at her. She still wasn't sure what to think about being labeled by the color of her robe.

There was an air of curiosity and anticipation filling the field. Soft wind brought scents of the near forest and chased away the heat of the midday sun. As the whole group got seated around Lady Kimiko a new couple approached them, causing a wave of new whispers, more shocked than excited this time. Kazu lifted her head and gasped.

Lord Sesshomaru stopped in front of his mother. At his side was a human. A miko dressed in white and red, but lacking the infamous weapon of her calling. Kazu realized she knew this female and a little smile appeared on her lips. Back then the human had been kind to her and Kazu knew that she wasn't one of those mikos hating all youkai.

"I see that nothing changed with you," Lady Kimiko said to her son. "You lead a human again. I supposed you don't plan to eat this one either?"

"No. This is Kagome," the daiyoukai said. "This one requires you to watch over her."

"Hey, don't make it out like I'm helpless," the human pouted and then bowed politely to the seated and stunned youkai ladies. One couldn't not notice the ease she was at while addressing the great lord. "Hello."

"My lord..." started one of the older females.

"This one can assure you that Kagome won't harm any of you. Unless you try to harm her or what's her to protect," the daiyoukai's gaze swept across the faces of the women and lingered on Kazu's and the wind youkai felt a bit too warm, despite the tree shade and the soft breeze. The lord turned to the human again. "Be seated, it's going to start soon. Remember to remain passive."

"Okay," Kagome smiled and sat beside Kazubana. Her reiki was wrapped tightly around her, obviously in an attempt not to aggravate the youkai surrounding her. Kazubana dared to smile at her and got a smile in return. "I know you, but I don't remember your name..."

"I'm Kazubana," Kazu bowed her head a bit, aware that they were now observed by quite a few people. The human's appearance was still debated by the crowd. Kazu guessed that since the daiyoukai had brought her there and because she was calm and keeping her reiki low, most of the youkai were less afraid, even if still suspicious of her.

"Ah, Kazubana," Kagome nodded. "It's nice to see you again and see that you're alright."

"May I inquire why are you here, lady miko?" asked Gin from Kazu's other side.

"On behalf of my mate and the request of Lord Sesshomaru," the miko replied and cast a glance towards the daiyoukai, now seated on a mat and surrounded by important looking people a bit away from their spot. She looked anxious, but doing her best to appear calm.

"Does it mean your mate is the chosen Inu no Taisho?" asked an older kitsune lady.

"Yeah," Kagome nodded with a wide smile.

A few minutes passed and the shock of seeing a miko among the ladies wore off a bit, since the priestess wasn't acting in a hostile way. Kazubana was talking to Seki, Gin and Kagome and enjoying the wind and the sense of freedom.

Suddenly a call of a dragon could be heard and a two headed dragon landed in the middle of the empty space meant for the battle. A man - or rather a hanyou - jumped off of their back and patted the creature.

"Ah-Un?" Kagome blinked and when she saw Kazu's curious gaze, she elaborated. "Ah-Un is Lord Sesshomaru's steed."

As soon as the dragon was gone again and the hanyou started to walk towards the daiyoukai the gathered youkai started to talk, some pretty loudly, asking what was the meaning of the half-breed's presence there. As he neared the mats Kazu could see the familiar face of the hanyou, scowling at the daiyoukai, his hands hidden in his sleeves.

"He looks..." Lady Kimiko whispered, stunned. "He looks so much..."

"He's mine," Kagome said in a warning tone. The silver inu glanced her way. "I'll fight for him."

"I see," the noble lady said quietly and Kagome gave a small nod. Everyone who heard this quiet exchange was staring at them two. Kazu knew that the miko and the hanyou shared a deep bond, she had witnessed their affectionate love before, in the teahouse, but the comment of the silver inu she didn't understand fully, she got even more confused when saw the look of nostalgia in her eyes.

Meanwhile the hanyou stopped walking and glared at the youkai lords and inhabitants of the palace, who were all more than eager to know why the lowly creature was brought in front of them by Ah-Un.

"You're late," Lord Sesshomaru's voice was calm as even, but for some reason it silenced everyone in an instant.

"You could tell your stupid guards about me, you asshole," was the hanyou's reply. The silence grew heavy with shock and Kazu couldn't it, she herself held her breath as well. How could a hanyou speak like this to the daiyoukai's face. And the more surprising fact was that the acid whip didn't snap to remove his head. Kagome just quietly facepalmed.


	11. Little Handy Character List

A/N: Info about all the characters - position, looks, a bit of personality or random stuff.  
I'm going to add to this list as the story progresses, so yeah, you won't find all the characters here right now. If you have questions about the characters you can put them in comments under this chap - I will do my best to update the list or just reply to you :D

* * *

 **Little Handy Character List**

* * *

Kazubana - Kazu - a wind youkai - Kagura's reincarnation. Red eyed and black haired, at court she wears orange of a concubine and is refereed to as Tiger Lily.

Sesshomaru - the Lord of the West. Don't poke him. And don't even think about running your fingers through that fuzzy softness of his tail.

Lady Kimiko - Sesshomaru's mother. She's loyal to her son and the West, which results in her acting towards ensuring the safety and happiness of her son and the land first. She's playful and neutral most of the time. Nicknames: The Formidable Sky Empress, Alpha Bitch.

Ministers and members of the Lord's Council  
First Minister - Lord Akira - a tanuki. He makes sure the goverment runs the land smoothly. He also acts as the temporary ruler when Sesshomaru leaves the West and his mother can't step in. He was the Minister for centuries working with Lady Kimiko when she was the Lady of the West. He's an introvert and is a workaholic.

Lady Gin - Minister of Finances - - a shiba inu youkai - a short female with white curly hair and usually dressed in pale violet kimono. She's rather kind, but she dislikes unreasonable spending of resources and is all about efficiency. Nicknamed Heelsnapper because she will snap at you for spending too much of the money.

Commanders of Army  
Inu no Taisho - Inuyasha - the first hanyou to ever hold a political or military power. Not accepting authorities unless they prove they're worth of being followed, brash, stubborn and most of all noodle loving.

Lord and Ladies of the court  
Lord Ken - a bear youkai - golden hair and muscular. Full of himself and often stepping over the line.

Lady Kagome - the first human granted the title of a lady since Lady Izayoi's time. Kind and caring, but also fierce. One of two people in the palace able to tame Inuyasha and often at his side. Nicknamed Inu no Miko.

Lady Saki - a tanuki with brown hair and eyes, often wearing green. She's one of daughters of the Prime Minister.

Servants  
Jaken - Sesshomaru's retainer - a kappa that left his tribe. Loyal and annoyingly loud.

Mai - Kazubana's maid - a black inu, smaller breed but not shiba. Black haired and curious. Loyal and acting sweet, but she can defend those in her charge.

Rei - Lady Kimiko's maid - an old otter, who acts very formal and is privy to many secrets. She's the one responsible for keeping Lady Kimiko up to date with what's happening in the palace

Others  
Chikara - a bull youkai carrying a huge sword.

A/N: Sorry it isn't a real chapter, but the past week was rather... trying.  
Also - aaargh, I hate creating OCs, I always feel like they look too flat or too over the top.


	12. Afternoon Blood Pt 2

**Afternoon Blood. Pt 2**

* * *

"This one hoped you;d show at least a semblance of manners in the ancient dwelling of our formidable father," was what Lord Sesshomaru said to the hanyou, who shrugged.

"My lord, say a word and I'll remove this foul creature from your sight," one of the lords seated near Lord Sesshomaru said, probably voicing desires of many others. Kazu felt sorry for the hanyou when she listened to the comments floating on the air. While the whispers about her had been mostly curiosity and speculation, the gathered youkai mostly had nothing good to say about the hanyou. There were a few neutral or positive words, but most was just pointing out his dirty heritage. Just like with her they didn't know who he was and why he had came, but they were quick to jump to the ordinary insults all hanyou suffered from the full youkai.

Kazu noticed that the silent half youkai seemed to be unaffected by the whispers, a twinkle in his yellow eyes reminding her that he was the one who had growled at the inu daiyoukai while being pinned by his hand. The man in red wasn't going to run away and feel sorry for what strangers were thinking about him, they weren't the source of his worth.

"That won't be necessary." the ruler said in a flat tone. "Jaken."

"Yes, my lord!" the kappa stepped forward, glared at the silent hanyou and after lifting his staff, spoke as loud as he could. "Witness the chosen Inu no Taisho and challenge his power and claim to the title if you dare!"

The swirling youki flaring around many of the gathered people was almost blinding. Kazu observed people stare in stunned silence or exclaiming in disbelief, some raging, some thinking it was a joke. Among this all only a handful of youkai remained silent and calm. She wondered how many questioned the sanity of their ruler, choosing an inferior being to hold command over all the West's forces.

"In this case I challenge the half-breed!" a tall and bulky bull youkai stepped in front of the crowd. Kazu watched him walk forward, smoothly and with purpose. He had one horn much shorter than the other, probably a result of breaking it in a fight. His tanned skin bore a handful of scars and his eyes were ones of a killer. He had a huge two handed sword at his hip. "I'm Chikara and I will deal with the half human scum in no time."

The hanyou just eyed him while Kazu noticed that something dark twinkled in eyes of both Kagome and Lord Sesshomaru. Beside that she noticed a small twitch of the great lord's mouth, as if he was holding in a scowl or a grin. The hanyou glanced towards Kagome and his ears twitched. Kazu wondered if it was an involuntary thing or a sign for the miko, but after that little motion the miko smiled and seemed to relax.

"The rules are simple - defeat your opponent by any means necessary, but don't kill him," Jaken stated. "Breaking the rule will end in death by our lord's hand."

"Restrain yourself," Lord Sesshomaru warned.

"I will, my lord. I doubt I'll have to use even a half of-" the bull bowed

"This one meant Inuyasha," the daiyoukai growled. Inuyasha didn't reply, seemingly more focused on the youkai he was going to face.

"I won't even draw my sword," Chikara promised. "And I'll make sure you're alive, because that's what Lord Sesshomaru wants." After those words he charged at the still motionless hanyou.

Five minutes later Lord Sesshomaru let out a painful sigh.

"I told you to restrain yourself, Inuyasha." he said, dropping his formal speech for a moment. Inuyasha kicked the bloody and broken shape laying under his feet and it wheezed. Watching the hanyou not only hold his ground against the huge and strong opponent had been breathtaking, the inu had moved with such efficiency, elegance and speed.

"He's alive," he pointed out and flickered his claws to get rid of the blood. The pile of maimed bull youkai managed to hiss a curse and got another kick.

"That was amusing," Lady Kimiko commented. She was probably the first one of the youkai spectators able to snap out of the shocked daze and form a sentence. The crowd was still and silent, many gaping at the

"Inuyasha, you moron!" an outraged female voice exclaimed and Kazu realized that it was Kagome, shaking her fist at the victorious hanyou. "You let him punch you!"

"Quit whining, wench, it's just a scratch!" Kazu almost giggled at the bickering of the pair, showing clearly how much Kagome cared for her mate, who had a big bruise on his cheek. He touched it carefully, "Keh! He hits like you!"

"Inuyasha!" the miko growled in annoyance and Kazu had to hide her face behind her fan. The fact that they could argue like that in the middle of at least a few hundreds of youkai, seemingly not paying attention to their surroundings, somehow made the whole experience like something out of a story.

"I, Lord Ken, won't allow the disgrace of a hanyou leading the West's armies to happen!" exclaimed a voice Kazu already knew. The golden haired bear youkai jumped on the sand and bowed to the daiyoukai, who was just watching what was happening. "Brute strength is nothing, a real leader needs a cunning mind and charisma. I, Lord Ken, will be a better Inu no Taisho than any worthless half-breed could ever dream to be."

"Are you finished?" Inuyasha asked, stepping away from the fallen bull so a few youkai dressed in the palace guard's uniforms could take him away. Kazu knew next to nothing about fighting, but the lord was even more muscular than the bull and his youki was far greater. She glanced around and saw that the gathered youkai were looking at the two opponents with anticipation and excitement.

It was already established that the hanyou was strong and fast and it looked like it made some of the spectators tone down their negative comments. They were willing to give Inuyasha a chance, curious how strong he really was and if he could actually be worthy of the title. Above all youkai respected power, so if the hanyou was really that strong they wouldn't doubt their lord's sanity.

"Ken is arrogant, but he's also a good fighter, as it is fitting for the nephew of one of the four generals," Lady Kimiko murmured. "This might be interesting."

Kazubana looked at her - the daiyoukai sat relaxed and seemed to not care who was going to win, which was the total opposite of Kagome. The human had her fists clenched, obviously able to sense Ken's youki rising and not liking that.

Meanwhile on the sand Inuyasha and Ken stood facing each other. The bear's youki flared around him when he drew his sword and brandished it in front of him.

"Behold Moonsickle, the blade that will spill your blood!" he exclaimed.

"Why would you call a sword a sickle?" Inuyasha tilted his head. "It isn't curved enough."

Some of the spectators laughed, some cheered Ken to defeat the hanyou and Kazubana couldn't help herself. Waving her fan above her head she called out.

"Go, Lord Inuyasha! Good luck!"

The white ears swiveled her way and she knew she had been heard. With the corner of her eye she caught the soft smile Kagome sent her way.

"Feh! I don't need luck!" Inuyasha smirked and unsheathed his sword. A large part of the audience fell silent and Kazu heard the miko beside her stifle a giggle at the eyes of many around them bulging out when the battered katana transformed in the hanyou's grip in a huge fang-like blade. The moment the youki swirled around it Inuyasha charged forward at the bear.

"Tessaiga," Lady Kimiko smiled softly and tilted her head to glance back at Kazu and Kagome. "You look oddly smug, little miko."

"I know what Inuyasha is capable of with Tessaiga in his hand," the human said, her eyes leaving the battling males just for a second. "He had chopped your brother's arm with it the first time the sword transformed for him. Luckily, the arm grew back, with Bakusaiga in it's grip."

"...My brother's... arm?" Lady Kimiko repeated in confusion.

"Lord Sesshomaru's," Kagome explained. "Isn't he your brother, my lady? You look so alike..."

The ladies laughed at her remark, some probably to hide their surprise at learning about why Lord Sesshomaru had a couple of years ago had spent almost a year without an arm. Lady Kimiko smirked as well.

"I'm his mother," she explained and Kagome covered her mouth in realization of her mistake. Seki was giggling behind her sleeve, along with some other ladies.

"Oh goodness, I'm sorry!" Kagome gasped. "But you look as young as he does and..."

"No need to apologize," Lady Kimiko waved a hand. "This one always appreciated when people think she's younger than she is. It isn't happening as often as this one would like. And don't worry about the fact that your mate temporarily made my son lose his hand. It was beneficial for him in the long run, so I don't hold a grudge."

"...Keh," Kagome muttered under her nose and turned to watch the fight.

And that was a sight to behold. Kazu was sure that to move with such speed, agility and deadly grace both males had had to train for years.

.

Sesshomaru was seated on a mat, overseeing the trials. He had chosen Inuyasha to be his Great General and take a place in his pack, but despite the ties of blood the hanyou had to prove to others that he was worthy of the title and authority. He had done well, defeating the bull youkai with force and speed, but now he was against a smarter, stronger foe. Ken was an arrogant bastard, but he wasn't an idiot and knew how to use that sword of his.

He glanced towards the spot where his mother sat, surrounded by ladies and watching over Kazubana and Kagome. It was probably the second safest place for Kagome to be right now, since the youkai didn't know and trust her yet. His mother was a handful and sometimes he wondered if she wasn't a kitsune in disguise with the amount of havoc she was capable of. One wondered how she had been able to rule the West before him with efficiency of a warlord.

Kazubana was talking to Kagome and Gin, which pleased him greatly. It seemed the girl was slowly blooming, coming out of her shyness. She had to make friends if she wanted to stay in the palace. If she wanted to stay. So far she hadn't done or said anything that could indicate her choice and despite his own word he was growing impatient and anxious. She wore the tiger lily robe, but that wasn't saying anything, for all he knew she could be unaware of the meaning of the color.

He turned his eyes at his little brother and it was hard not to smile to see the awed looks on the crowd's faces when they saw the legendary Fang in his grip. He had his own fang and no longer craved Tessaiga, he had witnessed Inuyasha growing and gaining mastery over the blade. His left shoulder ached a bit, a reminder of what an obsession could cause.

A wise ruler knew what to crave and when and how to reach for it.

It wasn't his destiny to wield Tessaiga. But he could use the sword in a different way.

Inuyasha charged the bear youkai with the same eagerness he jumped in every battle. But there was little recklessness in his action, he wanted to strike before anyone could shake off the shock of seeing the legendary blade in his hand. Sesshomaru watched and listened to the lords around him, gasping and commenting on the techniques and strength of each blow. Not all of them were skilled fighters, but they all enjoyed watching.

Lord Sesshomaru remained quiet, simply enjoying the show. Inuyasha had started as an untrained pup with a sword too great for him, but over time he had improved on his fighting skills and strength, partially due to all the fights with his elder brother. Now Sesshomaru could see the moves Inuyasha had learned from him in a fight against another. Tessaiga was an extraordinary weapon, looking too big and heavy to perform minuscule actions or switching between attacks in a split second. But It was also good to keep an opponent at a distance that rendered most swords useless, even if the wielder wasn't a master. And Inuyasha was a master of this blade, knowing all good and bad that come with it's size. He used it to shield his body from Ken's attacks while punching the youkai with his left hand or delivering a kick to his stomach before he could work his sword around Tessaiga and proceed with his own attack. Ken quickly realized his strategy and started to use his left hand and legs to deliver some blows of his own They spent a few minutes moving across the sand, their blades clashing, growling at each other and trying to lay a decisive blow. Suddenly the combatants disengaged and glared at each other.

"You fight like a wuss," the hanyou stated. Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow, for his little brother it was merely a mild insult, nothing more. He could breathe out much fouler things.

"You'll talk different when I spill your guts and take all that is yours!"

A spike in Inuyasha's youki was all the warning he got. With a suffering sigh the daiyoukai lifted a hand. Twelve stones put around the training field flared to life when touched by his youki and a barrier rose to create a dome over the fighters. Just in time.

"Kaze no Kizu!"

The look on Ken's face when the attack known to many in the West, was heading his way. Somehow he managed to dodge and the barrier shook when the attack hit it, probably scaring the youkai on the other side halfway to the underworld - some of them practically fled to the sides screaming like human children.

"You tried to kill me!" Ken exclaimed.

"And what if I did?" Inuyasha charged again, not letting his opponent rest. Ken barely had time to raise his blade to stop Tessaiga.

"You bastard! That's what you can expect from a half-breed!" he pushed Inuyasha back and immediately followed with a low slash meant for his leg.

"Oh, quit whining, it wasn't even charged to a half of it's normal power," the hanyou leaped to the side to avoid his attack and as soon as his feet touched the ground jumped at him again, Tessaiga coming in a wide arc. Ken easily stepped out of the way of the cut and delivered a kick to the exposed side of the hanyou, taking him down. As he plunged his blade towards his head Inuyasha rolled out of the way and spun Tessaiga, aiming for his feet and making the bear jump away unless he wanted to part with them.

A few minutes of that followed, both fighters attacking and defending themselves, running around and exchanging blows. Soon Ken's blade cut Inuyasha's hand while the hanyou kicked the bear in the stomach.

"Inuyasha, quit playing around!" Sesshomaru smirked a little when he heard Kagome's voice. She sounded upset over her hanyou getting hurt, even if the cut was so far the worst of it - the fire rat robe and his skills were keeping Ken's attacks at bay. The shout brought many youkai out of their stunned staring and they looked in disbelief at the miko glaring at the silver hanyou.

"Your whore of a human isn't as pretty as a youkai, but don't worry, I'll take good care of her," Sesshomaru just raised a brow at this statement. The poor stupid lord.

"Lady Kimiko, this one requires your assistance," the daiyoukai said, knowing his mother, who was studying the fight in silence, would hear him. Almost immediately her youki touched the stones, strengthening the barrier. Some exasperated and worried looks were send their way, but Sesshomaru ignored them, observing his little brother, who for once didn't respond with an immediate blind charge.

"Kagome is mine to protect," Inuyasha said in a very calm voice. "You're just a stupid bastard if you think I'll let you lay a paw on her. Trust me, what I'm going to do to you is nothing compared what she would."

"Quit whining, mongrel," Ken switched his standing to indicate he was ready for each and every attack Inuyasha could send his way. He wasn't prepare to be blinded by the sunlight reflected off of Tessaiga's diamond blade.

"Kongousouha!" Inuyasha roared as he swung the sword at his opponent. There was no mistaking the ire in his voice and Sesshomaru doubted the hanyou remembered not to kill the bear. Ken tried to side step the attack and shield himself with his own blade, evoking an ability that he called 'Full Moon Shield'. He called the barrier too late or it wasn't strong enough, Sesshomaru didn't know, nor care. All he knew was that the adamant spears flung from Tessaiga pierced straight through it and embedded themselves in Ken's body. Those that missed pierced the barrier, but luckily not passed through it entirely, so the gathered youkai, albeit scared and once again running for cover, remained unharmed. A thin, elaborate web of crack appeared on the surface of the now half-transparent dome.

"Little brother," Sesshomaru sighed in the silence that followed the panicked shouts of the fleeing youkai. It looked that, despite coming a long way to control his temper, Inuyasha still could go off faster than a Chinese firecracker in a volcano crater.

"He had it coming," Inuyasha sheathed his sword and approached the not moving body of his opponent laying in a heap. Blood was tinting the adamant spears red. "Look at it, he's still breathing.."

Sesshomaru waved a hand and the barrier disappeared, taking with it the adamant spears. Inuyasha walked towards the place where Sesshomaru sat, but stopped when the lords surrounding the daiyoukai all tensed and their youki swirled. Behind the hanyou a group of assigned youkai ran towards the fallen lord to carry him to the healer.

"Now you're afraid of me?" the hanyou asked the youkai that stood and sat around Sesshomaru. The daiyoukai refrained from smirking. Seeing someone else getting maimed by his soon-to-be Inu no Taisho, especially Ken, had proved to be really entertaining. 'Am I changing into my mother?' Sesshomaru wondered, remembering how his most esteemed lady mother loved to watch duels like this.

"Inuyasha is here to endure the challenges of any and all who wish to test him before he makes his vows," Sesshomaru spoke. "This one permits one more challenge before his patience runs out."

"In this case I will be the final challenger," exclaimed a feminine voice to the side of Sesshomaru's seat.

A/N: Who might be the last challenger? Will Inuyasha prevail?  
And did you enjoy the fighting part?


	13. Afternoon Blood Pt 3

A/N; The final trial is ahead of the new Inu no Taisho. His opponent is fierce and Kazu is unsure who will win in the duel.

* * *

 **Afternoon Blood. Pt 3**

* * *

"In this case I will be the final challenger,"

Kazubana gasped when she heard the feminine voice, one she knew, but not for very long. She turned her head to see what she already knew - the lady wasn't sitting near her anymore. Instead she was walking towards the red-clad hanyou, who tilted his head at her words.

"Oh, goodness..." Kagome whispered and looked at Kazu. "She's going to... fight him?"

"It looks that way," Kazu whispered back, concern in her voice. So fat she had been cheering Inuyasha on, but now she wasn't sure if she wanted the lady or the hanyou hurt and admitting defeat. Dog youkai were often pretty stubborn, there was no doubt they wouldn't hesitate to fight until one couldn't fight anymore. Adamant spears piercing Ken's body flashed in Kazu's mind, the smell of blood and wet sound of his flesh being torn to pieces by them too fresh in her memory. And she could just guess what deadly techniques the lady knew. It seemed many others had similar thoughts, since the audience was watching the pair with intense, curious and, in many cases, calculating eyes.

The silver-haired inu female stopped in front of the hanyou and glanced at Lord Sesshomaru, ignoring all the other youkai, who seemed pretty excited to see their former Lady stepping into the fighting circle. Kazu was unable to do much more than stare at the daiyoukai as her youki swelled and silence some of the spectators who had been putting bets on how long Inuyasha could stand against her. She glanced at the ruler, who simply closed his eyes. His noble mother smirked and looked again at the hanyou.

"Hello, Izayoi's son," the Lady Kimiko smiled warmly. "I am Kimiko and I wish to challenge you."

"You... You know my mother's name?" Inuyasha looked stunned and puzzled. The lady nodded.

"Yes, she was a friend of mine back in the day when she visited this palace," Lady Kimiko said with a small nod.

"Keh. I never expected Sesshomaru's sister to be friends with a human," the half inu put his hands in his sleeves.

"You idiot..." Kagome whispered beside Kazu. To Kazubana's surprise it wasn't Lady Kimiko who replied that.

"This one has no sister, little brother. This is this one's noble lady mother you will be dueling with," Lord Sesshomaru looked as stoic as always, but his eyes sparkled with - Kazu assumed had to be - mirth. The wind youkai realized that even if he wasn't laughing the whole situation was very amusing to him. And, judging by the sounds carried to her on the wind, he wasn't the only one finding it amusing.

"No way! You're the Alpha Bitch?" Inuyasha stared at the lady smiling at him. "But they say you..." he cut himself off.

Lady Kimiko's smile vanished.

"What do they say?" she asked in voice as cold as a glacier. Her youki didn't flare out, but somehow the atmosphere of the field suddenly became thick and ominous. Kazu felt as if a cold wind blew down her spine. The hanyou, who hadn't shown any sign of fear before, now took a step back and waved his hands in front of him, obviously panicked. It wasn't fear, it was common sense.

"Nothing! Nothing true, that's for sure!" he assured the lady hastily.

And just like that the aura of impending doom was lifted, the air again carried smells and scents of the forest, the gathered youkai all seemed to breathe deeply in relief, as if they had been the ones facing the possibility of being torn to shreds.

"Good," Lady Kimiko's voice was once again this soft, pleasant one. "It's good to see you inherited your mother's intelligence and don't listen to silly rumors that are spread by jealous tongues."

Inuyasha nodded eagerly.

'She sure scares him now,' Kazu thought a bit amused at the look on the hanyou's face. One glance around showed that many others felt similar about the former Lady of the West. Only a handful of faces, among those Sesshomaru's, held no sympathy for the hanyou or feat of the lady.

"Alright, let's start the challenge," Lady Kimiko clasped her hands in front of herself. "It was quite a while since I had a chance to have a decent match!"

Kazu bit her bottom lip, unsure what was going to happen now, There were many rumors about Lady Kimiko's power, she was truly a daiyoukai no one wanted to fight against. And, after seeing Inuyasha fight the lord before, Kazu knew that the hanyou wasn't a weakling as well. It was going to be hard to find a victor without some serious wounds to both parties...

"Wait a minute!" Inuyasha suddenly pointed a finger at her. "Don't tell me you want to be the Inu no Taisho!"

"In fact I don't desire the title," Lady Kimiko shook her head. "But I won't allow anyone take it and guard my son's back if I find them unworthy."

"That was what kept most youkai from trying to become the Great Generals in the past," Lady Gin murmured. "The fear that the noble lady mother will come after them to test them."

"Keh! Fine, bring it on!" Inuyasha stood tall and proud, not backing away from the female. Kazu glanced at Kagome, who was observing her mate with worried, determined eyes.

Lady Kimiko waved a hand and a couple of servant girls ran to her side, each carrying an item. In no time a small table was set in front of her, along with a pair of comfortable cushions. On the table was put a board and two boxes, containing white and golden stones.

The whole audience, until now expecting a real clash of mighty daiyoukai and surprisingly strong hanyou,stared with their mouths agape. The hanyou himself was barely able to blink as the lady sat down on one of the cushions and gestured for him to get seated himself.

"I like your attitude, young son of Izayoi," Lady Kimiko said. "Come, let's play and see if you have a mind of a general. We all already saw you inherited your father's temper and power."

"Uh... Okay?" the befuddled hanyou cautiously approached the pillow and sat across from Lady Kimiko, who smiled at him.

"Golden or white?" she asked, lifting the containers with colored rocks.

"This one's mother shall play white. Each has three seconds to place a rock," Lord Sesshomaru said and the final match began.

"I see," Kagome muttered beside Kazu. She sounded pretty relieved to find out that this duel wasn't going to end up with someone getting hurt. Most of the youkai spectators looked pretty down to find out that there was no spectacular battle of blood, speed and crazy youki attacks, but instead a much less gory game of Go. It was pretty fast-paced, since neither of the players wanted to lose their chance to put a rock, but it was still just a game. Kazu supposed most of the gathered people were going to lose interest in less than two minutes. "She's testing his strategy and fast thinking. If he has to lead an army he has to decide upon actions of many others, not just himself."

"Precisely," Lady Gin nodded. "The honorable lady mother loves to play, but not many can make the game captivating for her anymore."

"It still looks... Rather boring..." Lady Saki sighed.. Judging by the whispers on the wind she was voicing what many others felt. The gathered people started to talk among each other to pass the time, spreading rumors and theories about Inuyasha, the human miko and other related things.

"At least they both won't get hurt," Kazu pointed out. Kagome gave a nod.

"So, lady human," Lady Gin sad after few more rocks were added to the board. It was obvious the game, even if holding importance, wasn't that interesting to watch, especially to those who were too far to actually see what was going on on the board. Kazu herself was just glancing at it from time to time, listening to people more closely. "How come you married a hanyou? You are a powerful miko, from what I know priestess aren't the kind to like youkai or hanyou. Yet, here you are, concerned for your mate and ready to defeat your claim."

"Well, I'm not a normal miko. Like Inuyasha isn't a normal hanyou. We fit together," the human said simply, smiling at the shiba. "I don't hate all youkai, only those who hurt others for no reason. I have youkai friends and I hope that I can find many new ones here."

"That's a relief," the shiba smiled.

"And about my claim... Well, I said the truth - he's mine," Kagome added after glancing to the hanyou, his ears pointed towards the Lady Kimiko, focused as he was.

Kazu glanced at the players and stared. Somehow the two inu managed to get almost to the end of the game, putting and collecting their rocks, They were talking as well, but not in loud voices, It looked like a casual talk, but when Kazu listened closely she could hear that it was more like an interview.

"...not interested," the hanyou grumbled.

"Oh? You are a legitimate son of Touga, you can put a claim on the seat," Lady Kimiko glanced at her son who was silently watching them.

"I have my own territory," the hanyou shrugged and captured a pair of her rocks. He glared at her while picking them off the board. "And you were the ruler of the West, not the old man. So the prick is now the Lord."

"You're strong, especially for a hanyou, I'm sure with Tessaiga in your hand you could take it by force," Lady Kimiko said in a soft voice. The hanyou chuckled.

"Did you go senile or what? I'm not interested in challenging lord asshole over there. He's good at being the ruler and he's... he's pack," Inuyasha glanced towards his half-brother, who didn't correct him or even show that he had heard him.

While he spoke the lady deftly put her rock on the last free place and captured his own two rocks. She put the box with her rocks and smiled before standing up gracefully.

"We're finished here," she said loudly, catching many people by a surprise. The attention of the gathering was once more on the field. She stood facing her son, who just raised an eyebrow. "I suppose there is no way of talking you out of placing a hanyou as the Great General?"

"This one made his wishes clear," Lord Sesshomaru replied coolly. "He will endure and prevail."

"I found him lacking," Lady Kimiko stated in an emotionless tone of voice.

"Oi! I can hear you, you know!" Inuyasha jumped to his feet, his ears laid back. He didn't scream, but he was easily heard in the silence that fell after Lady Kimiko's verdict.

"This is odd," muttered Lady Gin beside Kazubana. She had been examining the board. "He won by a couple of points. that's a rare thing for our most esteemed lady to lose..."

Kazu could hear people whispering among each other, they were as confused as she herself was. If he had won - what was wrong?

"In which regard is my chosen one lacking, mother?" Lord Sesshomaru asked, his voice showing no emotion at all. Kazu noticed his gaze became colder, as if he thought his mother was going to disagree with his plans.

"In one, my son," Lady Kimiko ,lifted a hand and waved it in a slashing motion towards the grumbling hanyou. "He lacks manners."

With these words and that gesture her youki flared and a whip of light formed to slash across the hanyou's chest, sending the male flying for a couple of meters before falling to the ground.

"Oi!" Inuyasha leaped to his feet almost immediately and stood in a defensive fighting pose. "If ya wanna fight that's fine by me! Just don't expect me pulling back punches 'cause you're an old lady!"

"An old lady!" Lady Gin choked out in disbelief. Kazu just stared with her jaw dropped. What sane person would speak like that to the female daiyoukai?

"See? Lady Kimiko turned her head to cast a glance at her son. "And his self-preservation instinct is pretty small."

"What's small is your...!"

"Little brother, cease your teasing of this one's mother," Lord Sesshomaru raised a hand before the hanyou could finish the sentence. "Lady mother, your concerns are valid, yet this one assures you that the problem is shallowly rooted and can be fixed in no time. During this one's travels and the events leading to the death of Naraku, this one had a chance to witness what this one's little brother is made of. He won't fail at his duty and his loyalty can't be denied. And, despite his foul language, he can act civil, if he so wishes."

"In this case this one shall step off of the field of the trial," Lady Kimiko dipped her head a little and glanced at the hanyou, who stood with his hands crossed. "You better learn well, pup."

Inuyasha glared and Kazubana smiled when she saw his ears twitching in irritation. Lord Sesshomaru waited until his mother was once again seated among her ladies before he turned to look at his younger brother. Lady Kimiko received a few praises on her game, but it was obvious she was more focused on her son right now.

"Step closer," Lord Sesshomaru spoke to the hanyou in red, who stopped glaring and uncrossed his arms.

Kazubana was watching all that was happening with keen eyes, eager to see what was going to happen now. After all it was a really rare thing for a Great General to face trials and swear an oath tot he ruling Lord. Besides, it was the first real court ceremony she could watch and she wanted to take advantage of this.

The air was full of excitement of other youkai. Kazu could see that many spectators were more positive about the hanyou, probably after witnessing how powerful he was. She herself didn't experience any change of heart upon seeing the trial, after all she never hated hanyou. She glanced to Kagome and offered the woman a smile that was returned immediately before they both focused once more on the two brothers.

Inuyasha approached Sesshomaru without hurry and didn't even glance sideways to the lords who moved in unease. He also didn't pay attention to the crowd of youkai watching his every move. The daiyoukai remained seated and raised an eyebrow at the younger silver inu.

And then Inuyasha knelt before his brother.

"If someone told me an year ago this was going to happen I'd have laughed at them," Kagome muttered from Kazubana's side and pointed to the kneeling hanyou. "Inuyasha isn't the type to kneel."

"His father was like this as well," Lady Kimiko mused from her seat. "Pray, tell, lady miko, is your mate as aggressive in the bedchamber as he is on the field, like his sire was?"

A couple of ladies had to stifle a giggle when Kagome turned red, Kazubana covered her mouth by her sleeves to hide her own giggle.

"First of all he's mine," Kagome reminded, trying to reign in her embarrassment. "And the information is confidential."

Meanwhile Inuyasha reached into his sleeve and took out of it a rolled scroll of paper. He put it in front of himself before doing the same with the sheathed sword, being watched closely by everyone around.

"What is the scroll?" Kazu asked.

"It's his oath written seven times, I presume?" Lady Gin glanced to Kagome, who nodded. "So it is.

After carefully resting Tessaiga on the ground the hanyou looked at his brother again and put his hands on his thighs while taking a deep breath. Kazubana noticed that the Lord looked rather pleased and supposed it was because Inuyasha was doing well.

"Speak and be heard, Inu no Taisho," Lord Sesshomaru prompted.

"May the gods of the land and the gods in the heavens witness the words of this Inuyasha, son of Touga, son of Izayoi, the protector of Shikon Miko," Inuyasha said in a loud, clear voice. He sounded proud and calm, his ears facing forward. "This one pledges this day his sword, his youki and his life to build and help preserve the power delegated to this one's hands by the Lord of the West. This one swears to never desert his post before your throne. The laws you establish this one will obey in every deed, the lands you call yours this one will defend against all and every who dares to oppose the Western Throne, those who rise against your rule will be crushed under the foot of this Inu no Taisho.  
Let this one's words be sealed by blood.

With that the hanyou lifted his hands over the scroll and slashed his claws across his palm and let his blood trickle down his fingers on the pristine white paper.

"This Sesshomaru hears and accepts. Whoever opposes you as the Inu no Taisho is opposing the will of the Lord of the West. You are granted the superiority over the four armies of the West and the Palace Guard, along with other duties of your post. Hereby you're lifted to the rank of the Inu no Taisho of the West. May your fangs be sharp and deadly as our sire's. Be swift and honor your words, Inuyasha, my general."

With that the daiyoukai stood, pierced his own hand with a claw and allowed a few drops of his blood to fall on the scroll before he grabbed Inuyasha's still outstretched hand and helped him to his feet.

"Inu no Taisho!" called an old and tear-filled voice. Kazu looked around and saw a flea youkai sitting near Jaken on the mat and looking at the two silver inu towering over them with big, emotion-filled eyes. "Lord Sesshomaru!"

After a second the call was repeated by more and more youkai, some shouting with enthusiasm, some merely going through the motions of cheering their new Great General, their Lord and the West. Kazubana happily joined in, calling and waving her fan over her head, followed by the rest of the ladies. Even Lady Kimiko called out a couple of times. Kagome was smiling in the most happy way and Kazu wondered what was going through her head. After all now the miko was going to spend much more time among youkai, many of which would treat her with suspicion. But she seemed not to worry for the future and just focus on the sight of her mate and his brother standing side by side.

"The feast in honor of the Inu no Taisho will be held in the great hall of the Northern wing," Jaken announced. "The common folk and guards will be able to participate in the feast in the North-West garden."

The cheering in the crowd sounded just a bit more genuine now. Lady Kimiko stood up when Inuyasha picked up his sword and the scroll with his vow.

"Well, ladies, it's the time to prepare for the feast," she smiled at her companions. "Let's go congratulate our new Great General and..."

"Inuyasha!" Kazu turned around to find out that the new general wasn't anymore at his lord's side. He was standing just next to her, smirking at his wife, who was holding his already healed, but still dirty hand. "I'm so glad it's over."

"Keh," the hanyou muttered and tilted his head when he looked at Kazu.

"Congratulations, Inu no Taisho," the girl bowed. "I'm Kazubana."

"Yeah, I remember you," Inuyasha gave a small nod. "And thanks. I heard you earlier. Good that Sesshomaru brought you here."

"Uh... Yes..." Kazu blushed, realizing he meant her cheering him on during his fights. Luckily other people approached the hanyou with their congratulations and she could step back, away from the center of everyone's focus.

Inuyasha's comment reminded her that she was going to have a conversation with Lord Sesshomaru before sundown. One glance to the sky showed her that the hour was not that far away.

How was she going to focus on the feat, knowing that the lord wanted to talk to her, probably without any witnesses? The mere thought of being in his presence made her heart race and mind drift back to the expression on his face when she had grabbed his mokomoko this morning.

A/N: So? Good? Bad?  
Excited for the next chapter? I sure am! 


	14. Dusk Dew

A/N: Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. You don't know how much it means to see that you like this story.  
About the oath Inuyasha swore - it was a binding contract, so better not mess it up if you don't want problems later on. Inuyasha has a bad case of foot in mouth syndrome, but he isn't stupid enough to mess up a formal vow.

* * *

 **Dusk Dew**

* * *

"How did this disaster happen?" Lady Saki stared at the bow tying Lady Kagome's obi. The human twister as much as she could to look at it. The miko wore a pretty grass green kimono with a blue and white obi instead of her miko robes. All the ladies wore more elaborate kimonos for the feast, even Kazu had had to change into a more flashy one. It was still orange, but in a different hue and with colorful flowers scattered across the sleeves and the skirt. The obi was contrasting blue with tiger lilies embroidered on it. The already colorful group of women that had previously surrounded Lady Kimiko, was now looking even more splendid, their hair adorned with various kanzashi and combs, many holding fans. Only Lady Kimiko, now engaged in a discussion with the Prime Minister, wore the same purple robe, but beside the old tanuki in his stern blacks she still shone like a gemstone.

The group was seated in one corner of the great hall, near the shoji opening to the engawa and the garden. There were many nobles walking across the garden and enjoying a drink or a fine food on the other end of the room. Servants were diligently attending to their masters and musicians were playing on a raised platform near the gathered ladies. Kazu was amazed by everything and tried to soak in the feel of the joyful atmosphere. All the ladies in Lady Kimiko's group, who weren't busy talking to the daiyoukai and the Prime Minister, were looking at Lady Kagome's attire.

"Is it that bad?" the human asked and looked at the youkai ladies gathered around her. Kazubana smiled at her reassuringly, they both were new and not exactly of noble blood, so she felt somewhat closer to the nice miko.

"It's just a dramatically outdated bow, Lady Kagome," Lady Saki explained and frowned. "What maid would let the lady in her care wander around a fine feast like this with such a bow?"

"Inuyasha," Kagome muttered, causing some to blink in shock and others to giggle. "He helped me put the kimono on."

Ah, that's so sweet of him!" Lady Nanami, an oni with the longest and thickest hair Kazu had ever seen, clasped her hands together. The human blushed and turned to face the youkai women, effectively hiding the bow on her obi from their sight. Lady Kimiko smirked as she turned her attention back to her group, the Prime Minister bowing and walking away.

"It was very popular at court two centuries ago," Lady Gin mused. "I remember many women wearing bows like this. I wonder from where our new Inu no Taisho picked up the skill of tying obi for females."

"He always helps me with more fancy kimonos." Kagome blushed. Kazu smiled at the miko lady. She was talking with the youkai ladies with the same easy grace and kindness Kazu remembered from the teahouse. There was no hostility and even if she looked anxious at times she was not afraid. In the memories of Kagura the fan had shown her. Lady Kagome always showed some degree of fear and uncertainty, but now she seemed to be more confident. Kazubana hoped she could grow to be more confident and collected herself.

"I bet he ties your obi so he knows how to undo the bow!" Lady Saki giggled, causing Kagome to blush deeply and the ladies around giggle.

"Perhaps," the miko smirked despite her blush. "But I don't complain, as long as I get some help."

"I will tell the housekeeper to assign to you a maid who could teach your mate a less... ancient bow," Lady Kimiko declared. "Or better yet, I will warn the lady responsible for teaching you in court manners to teach , Kazubana, will be taking the lessons with lady miko."

"Oh," Kazu realized the inu lady had spoken to her after a second. "I will be delighted, thank you, honorable lady."

"Don't thank me," Lady Kimiko laughed. "It was my son's plan, since you two are new to this kind of things."

And with that one sentence, Kazubana was reminded about the talk she was going to have in the near future. Beside of that warning in the bath house Lady Kimiko seemed to be friendly towards her, so were the ladies from her group. And if a human could find a place in the palace, along with a hanyou, so could she. She just had to be patient and learn as much as possible without being in anyone's way.

As the ruler's companion she wouldn't have many people who could order her around, she could get tutors, be protected and taken care for. Three years of this didn't sound like being trapped in a cage, it sounded more and more like an opportunity to get stronger and more confident before going to wander the world like the wind, the more she thought about it.

In the teahouse girls were taught to sing and play instruments, to dance and hold a conversation, some wrote poetry, some were arranging flowers, but the array of things she could learn here was almost limitless. And to get out and breathe in fresh air she had had always to sneak out, afraid to get caught and punished. And, from what she knew, sometimes it was really hard for some daughters to get their debt paid for a long time.

Her thoughts drifted to Kagura, the only one wind youkai who had felt similar desires to hers. She didn't know much about Kagura's life, but from what she knew she had been forced to serve another and her meetings with Lady Kagome and her hanyou mate had almost always been violent because of that. Kagura's first meetings with Lord Sesshomaru had been far from friendly as well. The fan hadn't shown her much of other parts of Kagura's life, only images and fuzzy visions, but from Kazu already knew Kagura had always wanted to be independent, not having anyone stronger than her ruling her life.

She was brought back to the present by a burst of laughter. She blinked at the gathered ladies and it didn't take her long to figure out that they found a new target to tease, Lady Saki's brother who had made the mistake of approaching them and complimenting Lady Nanami. Others were coming and going, mostly to talk to Lady Kimiko or Lady Gin, but some readily took a spot among the group to talk for a while longer with others, a few times including even the human. Kazu's conversing skills were thoroughly tested, especially when a group of ministers came to talk to Lady Gin.

She quite enjoyed herself in the company of the ladies. She had always thought that the noble youkai were just arrogant and boring group of scheming snobs, and yes, some were like that, but there were also people who were more or less decent and nice. She just had to find out which ones were safe to befriend and she'd be fine. Already it looked like Lady Saki wanted to be hr friend and she always could count on Lady Kagome since they both were in a similar position. Well, Lady Kagome was mated to the Great General while she was unwed, but it was just a detail many would overlook. For now Kazu decided not to try and figure the hierarchy of the court and just enjoy herself and try and make new friends. Things were going pretty well, everyone seemed to have a good time, eating, drinking or playing games while talking with others.

Time passed quickly among the colorful flock of ladies surrounding her, most of which were coming and going. Only Lady Gin, Lady Kagome and herself stayed by Lady Kimiko's side all the time. That meant they were dangerously close to great quantities of sake and sweet rice cookies the inu lady seemed to like a lot, but somehow Kazubana managed to not only avoid the liquor, but also warn Lady Kagome, who seemed very thankful for the warning. She could get used to this life, one of more substance and self-purpose than the life she'd have as a teahouse daughter and more stability a wanderer could hope for.

Watching people act was a lot of fun and it was enlightening. Not all the youkai gathered came to pay their respects to the Honorable Lady Mother and the new lady, but the human was closely watched. From the stiffness that sometimes came to Kagome's movements it was easy to see she was aware how much attention was on her. But then she would lift her head and scan the room in search of a mane of unruly white hair with two fuzzy ears sticking out of it. As soon as she saw her mate the miko would relax and Kazubana would smile at that action. She didn't dare to hope one day she could share a bond quite like this, no teahouse daughter was allowed to love.

Lady Saki was trying to make her trade her fan for one of her own, a pretty fan with plum leaves on it, but Kazubana was refusing, laughing at the tanuki's pout. She was about to tell her that this fan was a gift and an important one, when suddenly she realized that the breeze around her, the auras of youkai nearby, all seemed to froze. The conversations around her died down suddenly. Everyone turned to look at something behind her and she didn't need much time or to glance herself to know what - or rather who - it was. There was no mistaking this aura.

"Keh, I just came to get Kagome," the hanyou grumbled and approached the mats where the ladies sat. His mate started to rise, but Lady Saki grabbed her hand.

"Oh, stay with us for a while longer!" she begged and looked at Inuyasha pleadingly. "You will stay with us, please?"

Kazubana wondered for what he was looking in her face when he stared at her for a moment, but then he abruptly sank to sit beside his mate, his legs crossed. Kagome smiled first at him, then at the tanuki..

"I'm glad you decided to grant us some of your time," Lady Kimiko said before anyone else could speak, her voice pleasant. "My dearest son kept you to himself for way too long, but finally you're here. Now we can discuss things."

"Uh-oh!" Kagome gasped and covered her mouth with a hand while Kazu and others laughed. The Great General scowled.

"What things?" he demanded with more than a hint of suspicion and wariness in his voice. His ears were laid back against his head.

"We played a game and Lady Kagome lost to me," Lady Kimiko smiled sweetly. "And as a reward I can give you one order you have to obey as if it was her wish. If you refuse she will have to face the punishment. Do you accept?"

"What's the thing you want?" the scowl on his face deepened and he moved closer to his, now blushing mate. The honorable lady mother pointed a finger at him, obviously amused by his wariness. Kazubana leaned in, curious what the inu lady would demand. There were many who had lost to Lady Kimiko today and she was always asking for a small thing as a reward. Those few who had won against her had been granted little gifts from the graceful and playful female.

"I order you to wear a ponytail tomorrow," she proclaimed with a playful glint in her eye. Lady Kagome sighed and relaxed at the simplicity of her demand, then looked to her mate.

"Please, say yes, the punishment is terrible," she pleaded, giving the bewildered man a soft smile. Sadly, Kazu didn't have the chance to hear his response to that, because at that moment Mai bent to her ear to whisper.

"The lord summons you, mistress."

Kazu felt a shiver run down her back at the words breathed against her ear. She bowed politely to the ladies who had spent the past few hours with her and followed Mai outside of the room and down a garden path where shadows of the passing day were playing between lights of lanterns other servants were lighting. A few nobles looked after her bright kimono as she passed them by in a daze, not even glancing their way. None stopped her as she walked after her silent maid to meet the Western Lord.

.

There was something highly amusing in seeing other youkai nobles annoyed at Inuyasha and desperately trying to hide that. It was also pretty entertaining to see his little brother interact with them. He had always assumed Inuyasha would charge at any youkai without a second thought, but there was more to him. He still was as brutally honest and brash as ever, but he wasn't stupid, a thing Sesshomaru was still a bit surprised to notice about his little brother. He was observing each and every lord and lady introduced to him, and then treated them accordingly. Those kind and open were granted the rare chance to talk to a rather well-mannered Inuyasha, those trying to give him veiled insults got a cold glare or a witty remark. Somehow his brother was staying within the boundaries of common sense.

And he, Sesshomaru, was providing no praise or scolding of any approach his court men had towards his little brother, confusing most of them. Well, the smarter youkai already figured out that since he made Inuyasha his Great General that meant he was no longer hateful towards him, but it seemed not all got that just yet. Watching the idiots trying to look down at Touga's blood and then being met with Inuyasha being his coarse self was like watching yapping pups being bit by a scolding dog. Inuyasha was a half-breed, but a half-breed of the silver inu line was still worth more than most of those weaklings and Sesshomaru know that now. His little brother complained about him introducing him to so many new people he could get to know later,, but he wasn't running away to the food or his mate.

Lord Sesshomaru smirked behind a cup of sake he was holding. It was probably because the 'Alpha Bitch' was guarding her. He needed to find a way to goad Inuyasha into spending some time with his mother, it could be most amusing to watch. He took a sip of his rice wine, wondering how many cups it would take his mother to make the hanyou pass out.

He refrained from glancing that way, he could hear the group of ladies gathered around his mother talking and laughing. His mother could be... trying... but she was wise and loyal, despite their differences he could trust her... Well, with some things at least. He knew that if he entrusted someone's safety to her she would protect them. And probably make them drink until they couldn't anymore. It was a true wonder Kagome was still sober. But sake aside, Lady Kimiko was the best protector, since no one dared to do or say anything around her that could be taken as an insult. His mother was known to pass her punishment where the victim stood.

That was why he was secretly glad that she and Kazubana seemed to like each other. The daiyoukai had assigned a skilled fighter to be the young lady's guardian, but knowing that his honorable mother would protect her made him relax a little. Still, the matter of Kazubana learning how to defend herself was an important one and he planned to assign a teacher for her soon.

Then his thoughts strayed towards the meeting that was drawing near. He thought of Kagura, who had lived and had died to get her freedom, to break the hold another had held over her. He could clearly remember their last conversation in the field of flowers, her voice full of emotions, but also of exhaustion and pain, so bittersweet. Could Kazubana find it in herself to trust another youkai? She had been so broken that she couldn't overcome the cursed miasma, she had died without enjoying her freedom. He still remembered the longing in her voice, the relief in her final sigh.

A feeling he rarely felt and despised with all his heart, took hold of him, a feeling that made his stomach tighten. He should not dwell on the past, he should focus on the present and on building the future. He shouldn't let uncertainty and anxiety take root in his mind.

But he could allow hope to do so.

He saw Inuyasha's ear twitch and swivel when Kagome laughed at something someone said. Still, the hanyou played his part pretty well, his attention focused mostly on a snake youkai who worked in the healing ward of the palace. That made him think about the relationship he had had with Kagura and what he hoped to build with Kazubana. Could it work, like it worked for his half-brother and his miko?

As it was with Kagome and the other miko, Kazubana was at the same time similar and different to Kagura in many ways. The more he looked and listened to her, the more it was obvious. She lacked the bitter nature of a woman held against her will, but she also lacked the experience of a fighter, the desire to kill. He wondered how his brother had felt about his mate and the other miko, how their relationship had progressed. He had never paid much attention to the gang of jewel shard hunters back then and now he felt... Unsettled. Be, the great Sesshomaru, refused to feel nervous.

Being unsure about anything wasn't a feeling he enjoyed and he decided to face and defeat his worries as he did with everything and everyone else. The sunset was drawing near and before it came he wanted to, as bizarre as it was, talk to his little brother. He, the daiyoukai, who had once wanted only to kill the hanyou, now desired to distract himself until the time came for his talk with Kazubana by a conversation with the brother he was still learning how to deal with.

He, great Sesshomaru, most definitely didn't need to ask his half-blood brother for any kind of advice or reassurance of his actions. He most definitely did not.

"Brother," he spoke suddenly. "Walk with me."

"Huh?" Inuyasha blinked at the daiyoukai standing up. He glanced back at the snake, but the healer was already bowing and stepping back, thanking him for the talk in most polite words. The hanyou shrugged and walked after Sesshomaru without more delay.

Sesshomaru led his brother out of the chamber and away from the places where people were feasting. They walked in silence through the gardens of the palace, passing under ancient trees and between ponds full of colorful carp fish. Finally Sesshomaru stopped near a small waterfall created on a stream passing through the gardens, far from any prying eyes. Sweet scent of evening flowers was filling the air as they swayed on a gentle breeze. The place was serene and one of his favorite ones in the gardens, because the whispering waterfall could grant a lot of secrecy those talking next to it, as long as they weren't too loud. Dew was shining on the delicate petals of the flowers surrounding the stream.

Both brothers looked at each other in silence for a while, before Inuyasha's ears twitched in annoyance. Sesshomaru wouldn't admit it, but the fact that his brother retained much of his youthful impatience and brashness even after mating and assuming his new role was a bit reassuring. It meant some things were not going to change drastically overnight and right now, as much as he didn't need that, he appreciated to be reminded of that fact.

"So? Spit it out!" he barked impatiently and glanced towards the palace. Sesshomaru thought that he was probably worrying about his mate and that it was better not to prolong the discussion. Separating young mates was always difficult, especially in a place as new to them as the court was to the hanyou and miko.

"This one wishes to ask you some questions," he stated. "You will speak truthfully."

"Couldn't you ask me your stupid questions there instead of dragging me halfway to Mt. Fuji?"

"This one wishes for the matter discussed between us to remain secret," Sesshomaru grunted out. Couldn't the stupid hanyou see that? His court was peaceful now, with no one daring to challenge his rule, but only a fool showed their weaknesses in public. Inuyasha just crossed his arms in front of himself. "This one is aware that before you met your mate you were in love with a miko who was her previous incarnation."

"Kikyou, yeah," Inuyasha gave a sharp nod, his annoyance changing into a grim scowl. "And you found what you think is Kagura's reincarnation and want to do what exactly?"

How dared he question him in such a manner? His brother was truly a rude one.

"This one's wishes and plans concerning Kazubana aren't your business," he growled.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Inuyasha shrugged. "Just one thing - if you refuse to see the girl as anything more than Kagura's reincarnation it won't work. Believe me, it's better to make sure she gets it that you see her as her own person. If you don't just send her away."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened. That was... surprisingly wise and accurate for Inuyasha.

"They... They are different," he said slowly. "And this one plans on making sure she knows that he doesn't see her as Kagura's copy. This one is... drawn to her and wants to... try."

"Then you're going to be fine, I guess," Inuyasha shrugged. "You don't know how many times I ate dirt because my wench was worried I saw Kikyou when I looked at her or made the mistake of comparing them."

"This one is sure that you earned most of your punishment with hard work," Sesshomaru smirked.

"Damn you, bastard!"

"I can assure you that I am a legitimate son, as are you. Both our mothers were married to our father when they gave birth to us," Sesshomaru almost laughed out loud at the look on Inuyasha's face. He used Inuyasha's distraction to ask a few more questions, but all he got from the hanyou were rather vague replies indicating that the start of a romantic relationship was mostly painful, trying and nerve-wrecking. The daiyoukai hoped that it wouldn't be the case for Kazubana and himself. She seemed so gentle. When he voiced this observation of his Inuyasha laughed at him.

"Good luck, brother! You will see how gentle a woman is when you step on her foot!" he called as he walked back towards the palace, obviously not wanting to continue their conversation. Insolent hanyou, how dared he walk away before getting a permission from him? He still had questions, even if getting answers from his happily married brother was like pulling teeth. For a moment there Sesshomaru pondered if he should call him back, but decided against it. Talking to his brother, actually talking and not throwing insults at each other, it was so bizarre and for some reason so right... For a minute there he actually got to relax and enjoy himself as he teased the hanyou.

Soon he sent for Kazubana. He remained by the little waterfall, watching the shadows of the trees grow longer and thicker for a while, then the wind brought him the scent of the approaching woman and he turned around to watch her.

She walked with grace and seemed at the same time anxious and serene. Her kimono seemed to shine in the darkening garden, her face pale and her eyes looking at him with genuine emotions in them. She wasn't trying to woo him or influence him in any other way, she didn't crave power or position. She wasn't one of the dozens of ladies that wanted to claim him and brag about it. Sesshomaru wondered if Kagura had had once been like this, before Naraku. He could see anxiety in her gaze, but also determination. Whatever she was going to do, she had already decided. Like Kagura she was planning ahead. Would she, like Kagura, choose to be free?

"Kazubana," he said when the girl bowed in front of him. "Stand up."

"My lord, you summoned me," she said, politely dropping her gaze to the ground. He didn't like that, he wanted to look in her eyes as they spoke. "I guess it's time for me to give you my answer?"

"Yes, indeed," he said in his stoic voice. He didn't want to sound emotionless, but he was so tense that it was easier to just stick to his cold facade. In his memories he stood in the middle of a meadow, among fragrant flowers, facing another woman. She had been wounded and finally had succumbed to the despair, had lost her will to fight, finding her freedom in death. Now her reincarnation stood before him, innocent and not broken yet, but also not prepared to face the cruel world on her own. If she went to wander alone like Kagura always had wanted, she wouldn't survive. He wanted to keep her safe, but he also wanted her to make the choice of staying under his protection. He wanted her to build a relationship based not on the bitter despair and desire to escape cruel fate, but on honest understanding and faithful love. Could he even hope to get something like this, being who he was? His little brother had this, after suffering for so long, so maybe it wasn't foolish to hope...

Kazubana tilted her head to look at the setting sun. Then, just before speaking again, she glanced at him, her eyes so full of life, so beautiful in the last rays of sunlight. They were red and of similar shape Kagura's had been, but at the same time they held warmth and hesitant hope, not the fast burning fire that consumed all.

"I want to stay."

A/N: I know, it's bad. I'm sorry it can't be better, but I guess I have a lot to learn to get better. Your feedback will surely help me with that, so let me know what you think.


	15. Dogs Fight, Dogs Play

A/N: Sorry it took so long, I literally had to wrestle Sesshomaru to play nice.

* * *

 **Dogs Fight, Dogs Play**

* * *

Inuyasha was sporting the tail.

Kazubana noticed it as soon as she peered over the edge of the roof. She had sneaked to see what the other new inhabitants of the Western Palace were up to, but she wasn't sure how to approach the hanyou and the human, so she decided to first watch them for a while.

She flew to the top of the roof of the Wisteria Palace, their reticence, and peered down at the little private garden Inuyasha stood there, tall and proud, dressed all in red, with the ponytail swaying behind his back. He looked almost too wild, too dangerous for the serene garden of the Wisteria Palace. The place had more trees than flower beds, but it was far from being as forest-like as the garden surrounding Lady Kimiko's residence. It looked more kept, the trees being more decorative and less thick than in that other place. Kazu briefly wondered about the way the gardens assigned to each of the pavilions of the Western Palace created different atmospheres around them.

Soon her musing were disturbed as the happenings down on the ground caught her attention. Kazubana gasped when she spotted the miko standing between the trees, a bow in her hand, aiming at the hanyou. What was going on? Weren't they mates? Wasn't Kagome friendly towards youkai? She had to save him, he was her lord's brother and the Great General!

The arrow flew and Kazubana lifted her hand, intending to create a gust of wind to push it off course. At the same time that she did that a hand captured her wrist and Inuyasha dodged easily the projectile that was not only had an oddly shaped arrowhead, but was also wasn't charged with reiki.

Kazubana would've wondered about that, but she was too busy with the hand that had stopped her from intervening.

The hand that belonged to the Western Lord himself.

She looked from the hand up to the golden eyes of the man kneeling on one knee beside her, his expression was as always calm and serene.

"Were you trying to assassinate my little brother or his mate?" he asked in that deep, cool voice of his. He didn't release her, but his hold wasn't painfully hard.

"Oh... What? No! Of course not!" Kazubana gasped in shock. Was he really thinking that she wanted to harm them? She gulped when she realized that her gesture of an attempted rescue could be easily misunderstood.

"Good," he let go of her hand and she sighed in relief, realizing that he wasn't thinking she was a threat to his kin "You better not disturb their training, unless you wish to be a part of it."

"Oh," Kazu pressed her hand close to her chest. "They are training, not fighting."

"It's not that different," the daiyoukai was still looking at her, crouched on the rooftop. In the background they could hear the miko laughing at something barked by her mate, but they both ignored the pair on the ground "Why are you here, Kazubana?"

"I..." Kazu looked down at her hands and then up at him. "I was a bit... restless, so I decided to see around..." she explained herself. When she had sneaked to the rooftop of the Wisteria Palace she hadn't imagined herself explaining to the Western Lord why she was sitting on the roof of his brother's residence.

The truth was she had been bored and curious. After waking up at dawn after the party, taking a bath, dressing and eating Kazubana had found herself unsure what to do. She had went for a walk in the garden, hoping to find something to do. When she had heard laughter from behind the garden wall opposite to the one that marked the border between the Chrysanthemum Pavilion and Tiger Lily Pavilion's gardens she had just went to see what had been happening there.

"Restless, hm?" She dared to glance up at the stoic lord. Maybe it wasn't right for her to sneak around the rooftops? He didn't look annoyed with her actions, so that was a relief. He was looking at her with a twinkle of amusement in his eye, even if he wasn't smiling. Then he glanced away from her. But... Maybe one that carried the title of the lord's concubine wasn't supposed to act this way? Maybe she should take a more dignified, reserved demeanor and not run on rooftops? She knew so little about the world she was going to be a part of.

"Inuyasha! Fetch!"

"Don't treat me like a dog, woman!" Kazu blinked when she realized that the voice of the hanyou sounded far too loud. The next second she felt a pair of arms grab and lift her. She squeaked when the air around her stirred as the younger dog youkai leaped off of the roof and landed beside his miko. Then he put her on the ground, smirking.

"Hi there, Lady Kazubana," Kagome giggled at the bewildered expression on the youkai's face. She gestured to a blanket spread on the grass behind her. "Have a seat."

"What is the meaning of this?" asked lord Sesshomaru, now alone on the edge of the roof. His brother stood between him and the two women. Kazu looked between them all, confused.

"You ain't gonna scare our visitor," Inuyasha declared.

"She is not scared, little brother," the daiyoukai stated and looked straight at Kazubana. "Is this correct, Kazubana?"

"Oh... I..." Kazu blushed. "I was a bit startled, that's all."

"See, half-breed? This one doesn't scare her. Now, quit your antics and bring her back," the daiyoukai demanded.

"Keh! You're too weak to come and get her yourself, you ass?" Inuyasha barked up at his brother. Lord Sesshomaru's gaze lingered on Kazubana before focusing on the smirking hanyou. His youki, usually wrapped tightly around him like a mantle, now flared out a little.

Kazubana gasped when the daiyoukai leaped off of the roof. Mid-air he had to change his trajectory, to avoid an arrow, but it didn't stop him, just slow him enough for the hanyou to step to the side and grab his outstretched hand. He probably intended to throw the attacking youkai at a tree, but Lord Sesshomaru was faster. His mokomoko wrapped around the other male's midsection and as the momentum pushed them, they both tumbled to the ground, growling and in Inuyasha's case cursing.

"My lord!" Kazu stood up from where Inuyasha had put her on the grass, but before she could move towards the fighting males, Lady Kagome grabbed her hand.

"Easy, they aren't going to kill each other," the miko said, a hint of amusement in her voice when she added. "Let him fight for you."

A hot blush painted Kazu's cheeks when she heard that. It only deepened when she saw the daiyoukai rolling on top of his chuckling opponent, then punching him and glancing up at her. There was something glowing in his eyes and she wasn't sure what it was.

Inuyasha used this moment of distraction to pull his legs close to his chest and under his older brother. In one strong kick he sent him flying off of himself and almost colliding with the approaching woman.

"Oh goodness, you're wearing a tail!" Lady Kimiko ignored her son flying by to land on his feet a few paces behind her. She clasped her hands in front of herself, smiling at Inuyasha. The hanyou sat up, rubbing his abused jaw.

"Your punches are like horse kicks," he complained.

"You shouldn't challenge those stronger than you, little brother," Lord Sesshomaru said as he straightened his back and glanced at Kazubana again before walking towards her. "This one believes that he saved you from the captivity, Kazubana."

Holding her hands close to her mouth and hiding her giggle behind a sleeve, Kazu nodded, shyly looking downwards.

"It looks this way, my lord," she agreed. Then she glanced up at him through her lashes. "Is there anything I could do to repay you?"

A tiny smirk appeared on his lips. He leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. Kazu gasped and felt her face hating up even more. They jumped in surprise when they sensed an irate miko aura spiking up.

When they looked to the side they saw Kagome drawing her bow, but this time there was no mistaking it, she was charging her reiki to the arrow resting on the bowstring. She was positively snarling at the daiyoukai female who stood next to the hanyou, her hands poised as if she was going to try and touch his ears while the man was leaning away from her.

"Mine," the human growled out pretty realistically, considering that she had no inu blood. "Back off."

"Mother, cease teasing them," Lord Sesshomaru sighed and shook his head when Lady Kimiko giggled. "Kagome, my honorable lady mother has no ill intentions towards your mate, she merely finds your reactions amusing, rest your weapon."

"Yeah, right, she wanted to grab his ears." Kagome grumbled just like Inuyasha had done every time Kouga had grabbed Kagome's hands.

"But, Kagome, he's the only one in the family in generations who has pointed ears!" Lady Kimiko exclaimed, "And you know what they say about pointed ears!"

"What do they say?" Kagome asked, finally lowering her bow. Kazu tilted her head, also curious. But before the inu female could reveal the secret, Inuyasha jumped to his feet and waved his hands, blushing madly.

"You don't say a word!" he pointed a clawed finger at her and Lady Kimiko frowned.

"Manners, boy, or I will goad your mate into attaching a leash to this collar of yours," she warned. He glared at her.

"Enough," Lord Sesshomaru's voice was quiet, but commanding. "You all are bickering like a kennel of puppies and this one doesn't have time for this."

"Then spill what you want and get lost!" Inuyasha barked, obviously offended for being called a puppy. Kazu looked from him to the daiyoukai, who took her hand in his. The hold was gentle and warm,, despite the coolness of his voice.

"This one wants you to be Kazubana's fighting instructor."

"What? No way! I'm not teaching your woman anything!" Inuyasha exclaimed. Kazu's heart beat speed up then she lowered her head. For a fleeting moment she felt so happy that her lord wanted to appoint her a teacher, but hearing his loud refusal made her hope fade.

"Son of mine," Lady Kimiko said suddenly, before the lord could growl at his brother. "He is correct. She is your concubine, you can't offer the position of her teacher to a male, even a mated close relative."

"This one chose him because the wind youkai available in the land don't possess this one's trust. He had fought a wind youkai before, he would know..." Kazubana watched them talk, thinking about the wind youkai he probably had in mind. Kagura - she had been their unwilling enemy for a long time. The fan had shown her glimpses of Kagura's battles with Inuyasha

"Why wouldn't you teach her how to fight, Lord Sesshomaru?" Kagome stood beside her mate. Kazu looked at her with hope rekindled in her eyes, then turned to look at her lord. "You fought Kagura too, and that wouldn't be against the custom, right?"

"The miko is correct," Lady Kimiko nodded and smiled at the human. "And judging by Kazu's flushed face she is fond of this option too."

Kazu felt even the tips of her ears radiate heat but refused to look away from the daiyoukai, waiting in anticipation for his decree. He glanced at her

"Very well, I will teach you, Kazubana," he said and then growled. "Stop bowing! I want to see your face."

Kazu immediately rose from her thankful bow and looked up at her lord, pure joy in her eyes. She was going to learn how to protect herself and it was a step she really wanted to take. She had no illusions of how hard it would be to acquire this skill, but with such a brilliant warrior teaching her - how could she do less than perfect?

Behind her back Lady Kimiko laid her hands on shoulders of the two others and when they glanced her way she gestured for them to go with her inside.

A/N; Well, we will never know what they say about pointed ears :D


	16. PSA

c

I don't really do this often, because even when I put a story on a hiatus I plan to come back and finish it one day, but I figured out it'd be better this way.

I lost my drive to continue this story - at least for the foreseeable future.  
It's not like it had multiple chapters planned and writing Sesshomaru in any semiromantic scene always was pretty hard for me.  
So, when I stood before the choice of picking up Forest Spirit and continuing Flowers... Well, I have a big soft spot for Forest Spirit, so yeah.  
I'm sorry, dear readers, for so abrupt end to this tale, but I figured out it'd be better than half-assed updates once in a blue moon.  
There is a very small chance I might come back to this AU one day, but as I said, don't hold your breath.

So, since it's so unlikely I'm going to continue this AU (despite me liking it a lot) I decided to mark this fic as 'Complete'. If anyone of you want to pick this AU up and do something decent with it - I'm open for this and will share what I have in my fic folder (it's not much, mind you, I was writing this story as it went). 


	17. Dogs Train, Dogs Fly

A/N: This story got an amazing new author, **4evaconfuzzled**. They will pick up from here. I'm so excited and happy!  
Enjoy and review as you please!

* * *

 **Dogs Train, Dogs Fly**

* * *

Left alone in the garden with Sesshomaru, Kazubana was at a loss for words. She'd been alone with him a few times already, but somehow, the timing and atmosphere of this situation seemed completely different. She felt the warmth rushing back to her ears and down her neck underneath the intensity of his gaze and quickly looked down.

Why is he looking at me like that? She thought. Before she could think anything else, Sesshomaru grabbed her chin with a claw-tipped hand and guided her face upwards towards his eyes. Kazubana's face grew even hotter and her mouth moved but no words came out. Then, Sesshomaru spoke as if he removed the words himself.

"Lesson one, keep your eyes on your opponent."

"Oh, forgive me!"

Sesshomaru replied in a noncommittal "Hn," and turned away,  
"We shall continue in the morning,"

Kazubana nodded, then realized his back was turned to her and he couldn't see, so she replied,

"Yes my lord!" and followed him out of the gardens of Wisteria Palace.

The two parted ways, Kazubana back towards the Tiger Lily Pavilion and Sesshomaru to the Main Palace.

.

The next morning, Kazubana rose with the sun. Having been so excited about training, she could hardly sleep the previous night, and once she finally did, it was even harder to stay asleep. The butterflies in her stomach wouldn't rest, making it hard to eat her breakfast.

"My lady, please hold still!" Mai pleaded as she tied her obi. She picked out a pretty, but simple kimono that was lightweight and breathable. Naturally, it was orange.

"I'm sorry," Kazubana replied. It was difficult for her to stop fidgeting. She kept thinking about how her training session with Lord Sesshomaru may go. Of course, they'd cover different fighting techniques. Perhaps he'd test her first, to see what skill she may already have. Kazubana snorted when she realized she had no skill and they'd likely start at something really basic like form. She could work with that. She would stand still, rigid like a pole. Then Lord Sesshomaru would tell her to relax. She would try but still be a little tense, then Sesshomaru would suddenly appear behind her with only the breeze as a warning. He'd put his hands on her shoulders and press down, whispering in her ear that she has nothing to fear-

"My lady!"

"Sorry sorry!" Kazubana's fantasy was interrupted by Mai's exasperated cry. It wasn't until then that Kazu realized she was squirming like a worm.

"Alright, I'm finished now," Mai said with a sigh of relief.

"Thank you."

"Now you must hurry, you don't want to be late!"

Kazubana did her best to run while also keeping her courtly appearance. The result was a frantic speedwalk that made her feel a little more than silly. When she reached the gardens Sesshomaru was already standing there as unreadable as ever.

"Good morning my lord," she greeted with a bow.

Sesshomaru nodded with a grunt and Kazubana took that as her signal to rise. Despite the chirps of the birds and rustling of the trees, the silence of Sesshomaru weighed heavy in Kazu's heart. After what seemed like an eternity, her lord finally broke the silence with a simple command.

"Follow me."

Before Kazu could say anything Sesshomaru was already halfway across the path. The wind demoness quickly rushed after him. They walked in silence until they reached a wide clearing, closed off by various orange blossom trees and a small stream. The smell of citrus permeated the air, accented by the fresh scent of the stream. Fallen oranges were scattered throughout the field, showing the gardeners hadn't yet been by to collect them. Kazubana had never been to this part of the gardens and her eyes lit up at the sight of it. The morning breeze whistled through the petals, carrying their sweet scent closer to her. Kazu raised her youki slightly to amplify its strength and let the wind carry the scent to Sesshomaru. She let the wind act as her fingers, weaving in and out of his hair, manipulating the silvery tresses to her will. She scrutinized him, searching for a reaction to her game. She couldn't tell if the breath she heard was his or her own, but the spark she saw in his eyes gave her a clue.

"Your control is strong."

"This is nothing, my lord," Kazubana replied, cheeks heating at the sudden compliment.

Sesshomaru deeper into the clearing and stopped, hands clasped behind him.

"You must have confidence in your abilities. If you don't, your opponent will take advantage of it."

"How?" Kazubana asked, walking to catch up with him.

"Like this."

In one swift motion, Sesshomaru whipped around and grabbed at Kazubana. Kazu, who was quite nimble herself, quickly jumped back out of his range of attack, nearly falling over in the process. Sesshomaru managed to dash forward to catch her in time.

"Well done," he praised, setting her down.

"That's not fair, I wasn't ready!"

"Your opponents won't usually make a habit of announcing their exact plans."

"Well, that's true I guess, but-"

Before she could finish her sentence Sesshomaru made another dash for her. Kazu leaped to the side with a yelp, making sure to steady her footing this time. She remained steady but left her back wide open for Sesshomaru to leap over her and attack from behind. She felt a light tap on the small of her back and gasped.

"You took your eyes off of me again."

"I was trying not to fall again."

"You must be aware of your surroundings as well."

Sesshomaru's face was a sea of tranquility, while Kazubana's was as red as her eyes, both from embarrassment and frustration. Not one to be made a fool of, Kazubana took a deep breath and steeled her nerves. Alright, my lord, playtime's over!

Sesshomaru ran forward to strike again, but Kazubana was prepared this time. She leaped to the right steadying herself and immediately got back into her stance. Sesshomaru came right back at her, and this time she leaped to the left. They continued like this, with Sesshomaru dashing and Kazubana dodging, until she was hunched over, panting with excitement.

"You are doing well."

Kazubana rose slightly and smiled at Sesshomaru.

"Thank you, my lo-"

Kazubana was cut off once again by Sesshomaru dashing towards her. This time she didn't even see him move. Too tired to react, Kazubana was tackled by Sesshomaru. However, she didn't feel the pain of the solid ground or a hard body. She felt warm and...fluffy. She opened her eyes and found herself in a field of white. She tried to move and soon found that she couldn't and that she was wrapped in the soft whiteness.  
Is this Lord Sesshomaru's fluff?

When Kazu finally managed to lift her head from the softness her hunch was confirmed. She was lying on her back, wrapped securely in Sesshomaru's fluff, while the lord himself was over her holding himself up with his hands. Kazubana's cheeks, ears, neck, and nose were burning as hot as a summer wildfire, and maybe even hotter.  
"Are you alright?" Sesshomaru asked. Kazubana opened her eyes, not knowing exactly when she closed them. She willed herself to meet his gaze and instantly regretted it. His golden eyes were far too bright and blinding. She couldn't decide whether she wanted to smile, laugh, or scream. All seemed like very bad decisions. She instead decided to struggle more.

"You will not get up until I know you are alright,"

Perhaps it was the low rumble of his voice that echoed in her chest, or maybe the way his eyes flashed when he emphasized, not. Maybe it was the way his claws dug tiny trenches into the ground beside her head, so she could hear every grain of soil that was freed. But somehow, Kazubana knew that this meant something more than just ensuring her well-being.

Her eyes half-lidded, and mouth in the slightest smirk, she took a shallow breath and choked on it when she heard Lord Sesshomaru growl. Within the next half-second Kazubana was lifted up and unwrapped from Sesshomaru's fluff, while he placed himself a good distance away from her.

"Oh, I'm so sorry my lord! I had no idea you would be keeping my lady company this morning!" said a young woman. She was a black-haired dog demoness holding a basket with fallen oranges from the garden. She was bowing low, but Kazubana could still see her shoulders shaking with mirth.

Sesshomaru, who seemed slightly paler than usual, nodded towards the gardener,

"You will finish your work," and turning towards Kazu he added, "we will continue this later."

And without another word, he took off to the sky. Kazubana looked up at where he disappeared and wrapped her arms around herself. She could still feel the warmth of his fluff, and his scent lingered on her body. She wondered what he meant by "continue this later,"

Was he talking about the training, or…

"Oh my! I was trying so hard not to laugh but I couldn't help it! Who'd expect to see such a scene?"

Kazubana looked at the gardener who was still there, now squatting with her face in her hands.

"I mean, it's only my first day, I hope I'm not in trouble!"

"Um excuse me," Kazubana began, walking towards her.

"My lady! Oh, I'm so sorry for walking in on your love scene! I swear I only saw the end," the woman blabbered with another deep bow.

"W-wait, love scene?"

"I promise you I'm not a pervert or anything, but I saw the demon lord hunched over on the ground and got worried, but when he said 'you are not leaving,' like that with such passion! Oh, I just had to know who he was talking to!"

Kazu's heart stopped and all the blood that rushed to her head from before left was drained in an instant.

"Whoa, you said you only saw the end!"

"That was the end, wasn't it? Weren't you getting ready for a second round?"

"Second round?" Kazu exclaimed dropping to her knees.

Kazubana knelt face to face with the gardener who looked rather puzzled. Head cocked to the side and eyes scanning Kazu up and down, a look of understanding suddenly passed over the demonesses face and she snapped her fingers.

"Oh! So you didn't do that!"

Kazu violently shook her head no.

"Well that explains why the lord's clothes were so neat, I can't imagine you not wanting to see what was beneath them."

"Hey uh, eh, um…" Kazu pointed an accusatory finger at the gardener, about to tell her everything wrong with what she was saying until she realized she had no idea what her name was.

"I'm Umeko," she responded as if reading her mind.

"Oh, um, I'm Kazubana."

"I know, my mother told me to memorize the names of all the lords and ladies of the court."

"Did she also tell you to spy in the gardens?"

"Hey, I already told you that was an accident!"

"I just don't understand! Didn't you smell us?"

"I-" Umeko began, then quickly put her hands over her mouth.

"You what?" Kazu questioned

"It's nothing! I have work to do!" Umeko got up and grabbed her basket, reaching for another fallen orange.

"Hey! You can't just start talking and end it like that! Come back!"

Kazubana got up to follow Umeko who was immersing herself in gathering the oranges.

"Oh! Look at all of these oranges! These trees sure know how to keep a girl busy!"

"Umeko!"

Umeko ignored Kazu's calls and simply ducked behind the trees. Whenever Kazu got close to her, she'd leap behind a different tree. Not wanting to step on any of the fallen oranges, Kazu was careful in her steps but was growing impatient. Tired of playing cat and mouse, or rather, wind sorceress and dog, Kazu sent a gust of wind to knock down Umeko's basket.

"Hey! Now I have to pick all of these up!" Umeko cried with a huff.

"I'm sorry, it was the only way I could get your attention!" Kazubana sighed and walked up to where the fallen basket was and began picking up the oranges. Umeko looked at her and squatted down to where she was.

"Hey, my mother told me not to let other people do my work,"

"Well, it's my mess, back at the teahouse I'd get a scolding from Mother Mi."

"Teahouse?" Umeko questioned raising an eyebrow.

"It's sort of a long story."

"I'm all ears."

"I'll tell you if you tell me what you were about to say."

Umeko looked at her, then back at the orange she was holding. She looked reluctant, but then finally shrugged and gave in.

"Okay, fine, but you'd better not say a single word!"

"I swear I won't."

"Alright, here goes," Umeko looked over both her shoulders and made a show of putting a finger over her lips. Kazubana leaned in, ears ready for whatever Umeko was about to say.

"I have no sense of smell," Umeko whispered.

"You have no sense of-" Before Kazu could finish Umeko's hands were over her mouth.

"You stupid idiot what did I just say?"

Umeko took her hands off of her mouth before anyone heard Kazu's muffled grunts.

"Oh right," Kazu said sheepishly. She continued softer, "But you really have no sense of smell?"

"Nope, my nose is about as good as a bat's eyes."

"But an inu youkai's nose is everything isn't it?"

"It is, that's why you can't say a single word. If word gets out that my nose is busted, who knows what'd happen?"

"Your secret's safe with me," Kazubana smiled softly at Umeko. Umeko eyed her for a moment, similar to how she did earlier before matching her with a brilliant smile of her own.

"Now tell me how you ended up here from a teahouse."

"Only if you tell me how you ended up in...your condition."  
"No fair! You can't change the rules now,"

Kazubana laughed and agreed to listen to Umeko's story another time. They passed the afternoon sharing stories of the teahouse and of Umeko's mother and sisters. Apparently, Umeko's mother was the head garden keeper for the Wisteria Palace since back in the late Lady Izayoi's time, and like her older sisters, that's how Umeko got a job in the palace, working at the Tiger Lily Pavilion. Since gardening is a relatively solitary job and doesn't rely heavily on having a good sense of smell, it was an easy choice for her. With all of their chatting, the time passes quickly and pretty soon, it's time for Umeko to return to the servant's quarters.

"Oh no! I'm late, at this rate I'm gonna be missing more than my sense of smell!"

"You'd better hurry then, will I see you again?"  
"Of course you will, I care for your garden!"  
"Oh right, goodbye then!"

"See ya!"

Left alone again in the garden, Kazubana was at a loss for what to do. She walked aimlessly back to the pavilion, taking in the sight of the now clear grounds. As she stepped onto the porch of the building, Mai was there to greet her.

"Good evening, milady," she said bowing.

"Good evening, Mai," Kazu replied with a nod.

Mai led her back to her bedroom to prepare her for dinner. After a nice hot bath, Mai dressed her in a much more elegant kimono of orange and vermillion. Kazubana was enjoying the feeling of Mai's deft fingers and jade comb running through her hair when Mai said,

"Lord Sesshomaru would like to dine with you this evening."

Kazubana choked on her spit.

"Are you alright milady?" Mai asked rubbing Kazu's back.

"Oh, I'm alright, but this is so sudden."

"I wish I could tell you more, but I was only told to make sure you are prepared to see him tonight."

"I don't think I'm ever prepared to see him," Kazu said under her breath.  
"Now milady, it's not so bad! You should be more optimistic."

"It's just that, he's so...intense! I can't help but feel intimidated."

"Well then don't feel intimidated."

"I can't help that!" Kazubana slumped down into the pillow she was kneeling on. Mai thumped her on the shoulder with the jade comb and leaned into her ear.

"What I'm saying is don't look at him like you're his subject, look at him like you're his lover."

Kazubana flushed at the memory of that morning in the garden clearing and what he said to her and all of the emotions she felt then came flooding back. She spluttered at the sudden bout of confidence she felt then and what she wanted to do.

"I-I couldn't!"

Mai giggled as she finished pinning Kazu's hair in place.

"It's just a suggestion, only lovers can see and feel the intricacies of a soul and still smile at the end,"

"What are you talking about?"

"You'll see, now go on."

Kazubana walked out the engawa and down towards the dining hall where Lord Sesshomaru was already waiting. He sat relaxed on a plush cushion, one leg bent with his arm resting on it and the other leg crossed beneath it. He looked up at where Kazubana stood at the entrance. Kazubana smiled, looking down as she entered the room and sat at a low table across from his.

"Good evening, my lord."

Sesshomaru nodded his greeting and sipped some sake. Kazu looked at the spread before her. Various bowls of rice, pickles, and condiments surrounded grilled duck meat. It looked and smelled delicious, and was certainly fancier than any meal she had at the teahouse.

Even on ordinary days I'm pampered!

Kazubana picked up her chopsticks and dug into her meal. About halfway through the pickles, she looked up and noticed that Lord Sesshomaru was just sitting there. She hadn't seen or heard him touch anything since he sipped the sake when she first greeted him. Suddenly feeling self-conscious, Kazubana slowed down and took smaller bites.

"Are you not hungry?" Sesshomaru said.

Kazubana froze.

Damn, of course he'd notice that I slowed down, he's been watching me like a hawk!

"I'd imagine you are after training all morning."

Kazubana sorted through several excuses in her head before remembering what Mai said earlier.

'What I'm saying is don't look at him like you're his subject, look at him like you're his lover'

Kazubana smiled softly at the dog demon and ate another pickle. After chewing and swallowing it she said,

"I am hungry and I thank you for joining me, but it's just that usually when someone says they'd like to dine with me, I expect them to actually dine, my lord."

The lord cocked a brow and simply Kazubana laughed. Feeling bold from seemingly catching Sesshomaru off guard, she picked up a piece of the grilled duck and offered it to him.

"You worked just as hard today, I imagine, my lord."

Sesshomaru's eyes flashed from the meat and back to Kazubana. He leaned forward, never breaking eye contact, and ate the duck meat from her chopsticks. Kazu was taken aback. She honestly didn't know what to expect. She knew the lord had a playful side from how he wrestled with his brother the previous day, but she didn't expect him to show it to her in private. Sesshomaru looked at her expectantly and Kazu smiled at him playfully. This time she grabbed a pickle and fed it to him the same way. Feeling wicked, she grabbed another piece of the duck meat, but this time when he leaned forward to bite it, she quickly brought her hand back and ate the meat herself. Kazubana couldn't believe her eyes. The usually unruffled face of Lord Sesshomaru was contorted into a look of shock. Kazubana couldn't hold the roar of laughter that escaped her.

"Do not do that again."

"Well, you should have gotten your own food," Kazubana gasped between giggles.

The rest of the meal continued on in relative peace. Kazubana told Sesshomaru about the rest of her day, and though he only chimed in a few words of his own, Kazu could still tell that he was listening.

Soon enough, Kazubana had finished her meal and was ready to return to her room. She stood up to bid Sesshomaru goodnight when he stopped her.

"Yes, my lord?"

"Come with me."

Curious, and also unsure of whether to take his words as a request or a command, Kazubana did as he said. She followed him outside through the gardens to the same orange blossom clearing they trained in earlier.  
"What are we doing here again?" she asked.

"Grab onto me."

Kazubana had no idea what was happening, but she also trusted Lord Sesshomaru. She looked him up and down, trying to find a place to grab when Sesshomaru took hold of her hands and placed them on his fluff. Before she could question him, the dog demon took off high above the trees and into the sky.

Once the initial shock of being off of the ground wore off, Kazubana opened her eyes and looked at the expanse of the lands below them. She could see the Tiger Lily Pavilion, and gardens surrounding it, only looking like a shrub from where she was. She could see the Main Palace, with various demons the size of dolls coming in and out. She saw two figures, one with a shock of silvery-white hair and dog ears and another in the robes of a miko walking through the gardens of the Wisteria Palace. She saw countless other buildings too, big and small, elaborate and simple. It was enough to be a country of its own.

"Is all of this land yours?" she asked.

"Hn," Lord Sesshomaru responded.

Kazubana gaped in awe at the sheer expanse of the grounds. For most of her life, her world was limited to the teahouse. It was all she had known. She could hardly dream of taking to the sky and seeing all of these wonderful sights, all she could focus on was doing a good job and repaying her debt. Now all of a sudden, she was here.

"As long as you are with me, this land is yours as well, you are free to explore as much of it as you wish."

"Really?"

"This one does not lie."

Kazubana was estatic. She knew that her life would change upon living with Sesshomaru, but with this, she saw her prospects lifting immensely. She thought of her blooming friendships with the ladies of the palace like Lady Kagome and Lady Saki. She thought of the odd, yet endearing relationship she had with Lady Kimiko. She thought of the fun morning in the garden with Umeko, and the unexpected advice she received from Mai. She thought of how amusing it was to watch Lord Sesshomaru play fight with his brother, and of the tender moment that she shared with the lord right now, clinging to his fur and flying through the evening sky. Even without all of this land, she would still feel free, simply because she chose to be here. Sesshomaru landed on a cliffside overlooking the sea. Kazubana had never seen the ocean and made a mental note to come here one day. The two sat on the edge of the cliff, and she found herself absent-mindedly stroking Lord Sesshomaru's arm. She was surprised when he leaned into the touch and place his other hand on top of hers. Their eyes met, and for once, Kazubana felt completely at ease.

"Will you be happy here?" he asked.

A gentle breeze caressed his face, making his long silver tresses dance. Kazubana couldn't tell if it was caused by her or not.

"I already am."


	18. Falling Leaves

A/N from Alannada: Enjoy and send your love to 4evaconfuzzled, who makes the story look so cool! You can find them on ao3 and tumblr.  
A/N by 4evaconfuzzled  
Hello again everyone! Sorry about the long wait! I am a poor college student with way too many exams...  
But I refuse to go down without a fight! This show will go on! :D Enjoy!

* * *

 **Falling Leaves**

* * *

When Kazubana first arrived at the Western Palace, the days spent there felt like a dream. With her luxurious clothing, magnificent living quarters, and Lord Sesshomaru right there with her. It certainly took some time, but she eventually got used to life in Lord Sesshomaru's court.

"Come now Lady Kazubana! It's hard to believe you grew up in a teahouse when you're pouring tea like that!"

 _Almost_ got used to life in Lord Sesshomaru's court.

Kazubana sighed and slumped her shoulders after being scolded by Lady Hisoka yet again. Kagome, who was kneeling next to her merely smiled and patted her back.

"It's alright Kazu, you'll get the hang of it," she reassured her, although Kazu found it hard to believe her when she could hear the mirth in her voice.

"How come you're adapting to this so quickly?"

"Let's just say I'm used to having to learn on the job…"

Kazubana didn't have time to ponder the meaning of Kagome's cryptic statement as Lady Hisoka's voice cut in again. Despite how smooth and reserved it was, it still cut as sharp as any blade. It was no wonder Lady Kimiko suggested she oversee their court training, Kazu thought.

"Alright ladies, that is enough on pouring tea for your lord, now we will move on to the order of entrance,"

A servant came to collect the tea utensils from the table, exiting just as quietly as she entered, while Kazu and Kagome rested their hands in their laps politely as they were taught to.

"Now for imperial dinners, Lord Sesshomaru enters first, followed by Lady Kazubana, who is followed by the Inu no Taisho, who is followed by Lady Kagome. However, for imperial games, Lady Kazubana and Lady Kagome will enter behind The Formidable Sky Empress, while Lord Sesshomaru and the Inu no Taisho enter with the other members of the Lord's Council."

Lady Hisoka carried on with other entrance patterns and specificities that Kazubana honestly felt were unnecessary. However, she figured if she were to spend the next three years of her life here, she may as well spend them right. _If worse comes to worst, I'll simply follow Lady Kagome._ She thought, smiling to herself deviously.

"Lady Kazubana, I see you must have the seating order for an imperial outing memorized quite well?"

"Um… isn't it the same as a state dinner?"

"That is correct! You are learning!"

Kazu let out a breath while Kagome giggled behind her hand.

"The trick is to simply memorize the line of succession and put everyone's spouses in-between," Lady Hisoka clarified matter of factly. "In any case, I think we may conclude today's lesson for now as you two must prepare for your first test."

"Test?" Kagome repeated in shock.

"Yes, there is a state dinner tonight, a very formal occasion. Much more formal than the rising of the new Inu no Taisho last month. The Lord's Council will be meeting with the councils of other demon tribes. In a way, this is the Inu no Taisho's official political debut, thus it is only natural for you two to be present as well."

"Oh dear…" Kazubana whispered to herself. While she was getting used to life in the palace, it was more of her getting used to being by Lord Sesshomaru's side as a companion rather than a member of the court. That's one reason why she was excited to begin training with Lady Hisoka. She was an older dog demoness, as old as Lady Kimiko, yet still as youthful-looking and beautiful. She was a stern teacher, but one of the best. Kazubana was learning a lot, but she didn't quite feel ready to attend such a formal occasion. It was one thing to be in the comfort of the Western Palace with her new friends and Lord Sesshomaru. For one thing, no one would dare cross the daiyoukai by gossiping about his chosen. Yet again, she felt secure here. She's messed up many times here, and everyone was caring and understanding. What if she offended someone at the dinner? This wasn't fun and games, it was politics. She couldn't bear to mess up tribe relations. Kazubana felt a breeze pick up around her, matching the uneasy feeling in her heart. As if sensing her distress, Kagome placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, Kazu, I'll be there, and so will Inuyasha and Sesshomaru. You won't be alone," She said stroking her arm. Kazu took a deep breath and let the winds die down. When she felt calmer she gave Kagome a winning smile of her own and turned to Lady Hisoka.

"Right, I'm ready."

Lady Hisoka raised one eyebrow and grinned at the two women.

"Very well then, I wish you both good fortune," and with that, she glided out the door, in a flash of blue and green robes, taking with her all of Kazubana's false confidence. Kagome yelped when the winds once again gained their strength and did her best to hold down the low table they knelt at.

"Oh, gods what am I thinking?" Kazu asked no one in particular, getting up to pace around the room. This action only made the winds even stronger, and the paper walls began rattling.

"That's a very good question Kazu," Kagome responded, now digging her nails into the tatami mats in order to keep from flying around the room. "How about we start by relaxing?"

Kazu made a confused "Oh?" before looking around and noticing for the first time the mildly destructive winds circling the tea room. She immediately sat back down and bit her lip, causing the winds to stop once again.

"Alright, that's better," Kagome gasped running her fingers through her wind-blown hair.

"I'm sorry Lady Kagome!"

"It's fine! Like I said before, relax. You won't be alone."

As much as Kazubana wanted to voice her concerns and doubts, she simply couldn't bring herself to when Kagome placed a soft hand on her cheek and looked at her with one of the most genuine smiles she'd ever seen. Kagome reached out with her free hand, and Kazubana took the invitation to grab it, allowing Kagome to rub little circles in it.

"My mother used to do this to me whenever I was nervous."

At first, Kazu found the contact to be a bit alarming, but after a few minutes, she saw how the gesture could be calming. She felt the tension in her hands melt away, swiftly followed by the tension in her forearms, shoulders, and neck, and eventually, her heart. Even after Kagome saw her off to her pavilion and she was dressed by Mai, Kazu continued the motion on her own, right thumb rubbing circles on her left palm, and switching whenever one thumb grew stiff. Initially, the motions were calm and leisurely, enough for her to forget she was doing it. But when she was escorted to the main gate of the palace and sent to stand next to Lord Sesshomaru, the motions grew frantic and vigorous, only growing more so when the party arrived at the Eastern Palace of the Deer Youkai and took their seats in the great hall.

"Hey, is she okay? She looks like she's about to rub a Kazanna in her hand," Inuyasha whispered to Kagome.

She simply gave him a reassuring smile before catching Kazu's gaze and winking at her. Kazu finally realized just how hard she was rubbing her hand and laid them flat on the table. All around her were high ranking daiyoukai of every cloth in the realm. She and Kagome were taught the names of the most important ones and their families by Lady Hisoka. The amount of wealth and power in the room was both amazing and intimidating, even after spending a month with the most wealthy and powerful daiyoukai himself. Sesshomaru placed his own hand on top of hers and stroked it gently, whispering in her ear,

"There is nothing for you to fear, you are perfect."

It took everything in her power not to faint on the spot, and she's certain she would have had the leader of the deer tribe not made his grand entrance at the north of the hall.

"Good evening friends! And welcome to the Hall of Dreams!" he said stretching his arms out as two lines of beautiful women dressed in kimonos of green, blue, and yellow threw chrysanthemums in his path. The man was just as, if not more beautiful than the women, with pale brown hair framing snow-white skin. His eyes were big emerald green saucers, and he was dressed in a fine robe of sky blue with tree patterns on it. Atop his head were a pair of large branching antlers that nearly sparkled in the light of the torches.

"Here, the distinction between dreams and reality does not exist, for everything you dream of is real, and everything that is real is but a dream. Here you may throw your cares away, and do as you please. Eat your fill, drink your fill, and love your fill," as he said the last part he picked up a flower and tossed it to a woman at the table who flushed as she caught it, causing the man who was likely her husband to growl his displeasure.

"For here, there are no negative consequences, only the spoils of your pleasure. So tell your inhibitions that tonight they are at the mercy of this Hakiyo and that he says to let the sake flow!" and with that the women who were throwing the flowers immediately set to pouring sake to all of the guests in perfect unison. The guests started applauding the enchanting spectacle. Some out of praise for the beautiful display, while some, like that woman's husband, out of sheer politeness. Kazubana was a bit overwhelmed but did find the show to be entertaining. After pouring the sake, the women began to dance and play music for them. She found it to be quite ironic how she was in their positions not too long ago, and now the situation was reversed. Kazu was in awe by how talented they were despite how young some of them seemed. _But then again, judging by how elaborate this Hakiyo's introduction was, he seems the type to never settle for less,_ Kazu thought to herself. Soon, more beautiful women came bearing trays of food and set them down before each of the guests. Lord Hakiyo then stood and raised his cup.

"The food has arrived, and you may dine to your filling as we speak. However, before we attend to stately manners, it seems there are some unfamiliar faces in my court," he said looking at Lord Sesshomaru's side of the table in particular. His eyes scanned Kazubana's passively, but when they darted to Inuyasha and Kagome, they took a sinister glint. Kazu searched Sesshomaru's face for a reaction, but he remained mostly neutral. She could see a hint of curiosity in the way his brow arched slightly and his head turned in Inuyasha's direction.

"Keh," Inuyasha snorted, earning a few disgusted murmurs from around the table. A ghost of a smirk graced Sesshomaru's lips when Lord Hakiyo twitched at Inuyasha's blatant disrespect for him, while Kagome stroked the hanyou's leg beneath the table to keep him from being too brash. A quick look from his brother let Inuyasha know that he had a limit, and he had just reached it, so with a barely audible growl, he rose and bowed before Lord Hakiyo.

"This one is called Inuyasha, Inu no Taisho of the Western Lands, and protector of the Shikon Miko."

A look of shock flashed across the deer lord's face before swiftly being replaced by one of amusement.

"Oh? You're the new Inu no Taisho I've been hearing about? Well, you're awful pretty for a mutt, I thought you may have been more beast-like," he said with a sip of sake. "Or maybe I've spoken too soon? Look at those ears, it's like you got stuck mid-transformation!"

This sparked a smattering of giggles from a few of the guests. Inuyasha's eyes darted to Sesshomaru who merely sipped his own sake. Suddenly, the hanyou smiled brightly, showing his fangs, while Kagome shook her head.

"So I am. I guess I'm pretty lucky huh? I mean I could have been you with antlers way too big for my head. How do you keep your neck from breaking by the way?"

This got even more bouts of laughter from the guests and a look of tranquil fury from Hakiyo, who turned his attention to Kagome.

"And just what are you?"

"What I am, is a priestess. _Who_ I am is Kagome, and Inuyasha is my husband," she replied calmly.

"My, my! I heard rumors of a mortal priestess who wed a hanyou. I never thought they were the same couple, nor did I think they'd last this long."

"You must be pretty slow to the uptake then, it didn't anyone else nearly this long!" Inuyasha chimed in.

More giggles spouted from the table, and Hakiyo was getting frustrated. He once again turned his attention away from Inuyasha.

"And finally, you."

Kazubana inhaled sharply, not expecting him to really care for who she was. She figured he wanted to save face after being insulted by Inuyasha _three_ times in not even five minutes.

Sesshomaru stroked her hand again, and she felt calmer.

"I am Kazubana, a companion to Lord Sesshomaru," she answered with a bow.

Lord Hakiyo scrutinized her intently, but she couldn't figure out what he was searching for.

"I'm glad to know at least someone in your group shows a little class Lord Sesshomaru. I'm not sure what is worse, the fact that your father produced this filth, or the fact that you allow it to reside in your palace. Heh, perhaps you'll be taking human whores as well, milord? In true Inu fashion? "

This did not garner any laughs, for the surge of youki that flowed from the two brothers alone was unbearably great. Kazu was nearly suffocating from it. Inuyasha's growling was now very audible, and Kagome was trying again to calm him down, although it was hard enough for her to control her own anger that wanted to spark. Kazubana felt the wind pick up around her again like that morning. Who was this Hakiyo, and what right does he have to be so cruel? Finally, after a weighty silence, Lord Sesshomaru spoke.

"You would be wise to not say anything else."

Hakiyo realized his mistake as soon as he felt the youki, but hearing Sesshomaru say it out loud, made something snap within him. He flicked his hair and coughed.

"S-so shall we begin?"

The rest of the dinner passed uneventfully. There was merely talk about continuing treaties, solidifying borders, clan blood feuds, and a few arranged marriages. Lord Hakiyo opened his palace to those who wished to stay the night, but Lord Sesshomaru declined. After that, everyone went to mingle. Inuyasha went with Sesshomaru to formally introduce himself to the other clans, while Kazubana spotted Kagome walking off alone to the porch.

"Lady Kagome?"

"Please Kazu, you can just call me Kagome!"

"Alright then, Kagome, what's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing, I'm just feeling tired is all. It's been such a long day," Kagome sat down on the edge and looked up at the stars, gesturing for Kazubana to join her. Kazu obliged and sat in the spot to the left of her.

"I usually do this with Inuyasha, but you make a pretty good replacement."

" _Keh_ ," Kazubana replied in her best Inuyasha impression. The two laughed at the very awful attempt, clutching their sides and stomachs and struggling to catch their breaths.

"P-please Kazu, don't ever let Inuyasha hear that!"

"Hopefully he didn't already…" Kagome chuckled again at the image of the hanyou's ears twitching back in the palace and shook her head.

"It'll be your hide if he did."

The two fell into a comfortable silence, both lost in their respective thoughts. Kazubana started fantasizing about flying all the way up to the sky and plucking the stars right out from it, like picking berries. She wondered what she would do with them. Sell them? Save them? Maybe sew them into a robe, or weave them into a necklace. Before she could finish her thought, Kagome broke the silence.

"What's wrong Kazu?"

Kazubana paused, debating on whether or not she should tell her. The look in Kagome's eyes told her that she probably already knew, so she didn't bother.

"...How...How can you deal with that?"

"With what?"

"You know, with people always assuming things about you, and insulting Inuyasha. Lord Hakiyo was so cruel, even though he knows nothing about us. Sure I had my thoughts on Inuyasha when I first saw him at the teahouse, but I would have never treated him like that!"

Kagome laughed, much to Kazubana's shock.

"What's so funny?"

"I knew it! I knew that's what you were going to ask!"

"Well, what's the answer then? How can you be so strong?"

"Because it's not just strength Kazu, it's love."

"Love?"

"How did you feel earlier when Lord Sesshomaru grabbed your hand when you were nervous?"

A flood of emotions came rushing back to Kazu making her feel hot and cold at the same time.

"Um… at ease I guess?"

"Like you could conquer everyone in that room right? Like nothing could go wrong at all?"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it."

"Well, that's what Inuyasha does for me. With him, I feel like I could conquer everyone, I feel like everything will be alright, even at the bleakest moments."

"Wow...you really love each other don't you?"

"Of course! Someday I'll tell you the full story, but let's just say I came a long way for Inuyasha, and I wouldn't give him up for the world. There's no way I'm letting the thoughts of some deer and his followers come between us. So neither should you."

Kazubana let Kagome's words sink in. It was still early, and she couldn't quite sort out her feelings. She knew that she enjoyed Sesshomaru's presence and that she definitely found him attractive. She could even say he made her feel strong. But did she make him feel strong? Was she even really willing to stay with him after the three years was up? She decided to stop thinking too much about it and just focus on the fresh night air and the stars. After a few more moments, Kagome stood up and stretched.

"I'm sure the boys are finished mingling now. Are you ready to go back in?"

Kazu nodded and grabbed Kagome's hand as they walked back into the palace together.

They found Inuyasha immediately, digging into a dish of noodles and pickles. As soon as he caught Kagome's scent, however, he abandoned the bowl and all but tackled her.

"Kagome, where've you been?"

"I went outside for some fresh air with Kazu."

"I sure coulda used that! I've been stuck talking war strategies with these old farts for the past hour!"

"Come on Inuyasha! It couldn't have been that bad, your brother was with you wasn't he?"

"As I said, I've been talking war strategies with _these old farts_ for the past hour!"

Kazu giggled at the couples banter and left them to it to find Sesshomaru. She hadn't had much alone time with him that day, and she was missing him a bit. She followed his scent up a set of stairs and down a long hall to a separate, much smaller banquet room where she heard him and an old man talking in hushed voices.

"So Lord Sesshomaru, I need your help!"

"Dead animals you say?"

Kazubana stopped at the edge of the doorway and knelt to avoid her scent being caught. Whatever they were talking about sounded like a secret.

"Indeed! I tried asking Lord Hakiyo for help, but he said that the matters of tanukis are none of his concern!"

"Neither are they of mine, but you live close to my territory."

"You didn't have to say that out loud!"

"How have they died?"

"They seemed to have been poisoned."

"Do you have any enemies?"

"No! We are peaceful youkai!"

"Hn...I will look into it."

Kazubana heard Sesshomaru's footsteps approaching the door and panicked. Before she could think of a good enough excuse to be kneeling outside of the doorway, Sesshomaru was already stood before her, looking down with an expression of mild surprise and amusement.

"Kazubana, this one didn't take you for the type to eavesdrop."

Kazubana stared up at Lord Sesshomaru from her position on the floor, feeling even sillier when she heard the hitch of breath that was as close to a laugh as the dog demon would get in a public setting.

"I didn't mean to eavesdrop, I was only looking for you," Kazu responded standing up.

"And you have found me."

Kazu smiled softly at the tenderness in Sesshomaru's voice as if she was the highlight of this evening. Confidence bolstered from her conversation with Kagome and a bit from the sake earlier, she stepped closer to Sesshomaru and pulled him into a warm embrace. The demon relaxed into it and pulled her even tighter, engulfing her in his heady musk that had her more intoxicated than the alcohol. When they finally separated, Sesshomaru took her hand in his and laid a soft peck on it.

"How much of the conversation did you hear?"

"Pretty much all of it."

"So you know about the dead animals?"

"I do."

"And you know I must investigate it?" Kazu could sense where the conversation was going even without the demon lord spelling it out for her. She felt her heart squeeze as she nodded her head to Sesshomaru.

"It pains me to leave you like this," he said, tightening his hold on her hand.

"Why can't you take me?"

"We do not know what enemy we're facing or if it's even an enemy at all. At best, it's just a hungry yokai who got too close to the tanuki's territory. At worst, it's a dangerous and unfamiliar threat. If it's the latter, I don't want to put you at risk," Sesshomaru's eyes took on a faraway look, and Kazu wondered if he's experienced something like that before. Understanding that there was no getting through to him, she simply took his hand and repeated his earlier gesture.

"When are you leaving?"

"First thing in the morning."

"And when will you return?"

"It depends on what is causing the problem. If it is simply a cocky lesser yokai, I could return tomorrow evening. If it is something bigger, I may be a few days. But you must remember that no matter what, I will return."

"I understand."

After sharing one more embrace, the two returned to the main hall of the palace. They bid their farewells to Lord Hakiyo and made their way to Sesshomaru's dragons. Inuyasha and Kagome were already there, having an intense discussion about something.

"All I'm sayin' is that red suits me best!"

"And all I'm saying is that you could broaden your horizons!"

"So you're taking her side?"

"I'm not taking Lady Kimiko's side, but I can certainly see where she's coming from."

"What is my little brother whining about this time?" Sesshomaru cut in.

The couple turned to see Kazubana and Sesshomaru catching up to them, the former giggling the whole way there, and the latter looking mildly exasperated.

"Well, I was talking to your mother earlier today, and we started talking about how Inuyasha only wears red, then we started talking about how he'd look in other colors, so I thought about stopping at a shop on the way home to buy him a new robe in another color, but _someone_ wanted to throw a tantrum about it!"

"I'm not throwing a tantrum!" Inuyasha shouted in a huff, looking very much like a toddler when he crossed his arms and turned his nose up in the air.

"I think he'd look very handsome in royal blue," Kazubana added with a smirk.

"I was thinking the same!"

While the girls giggled about different colors and patterns as they entered the _Norimono_ , Inuyasha shook his head and mounted A-Un as Sesshomaru transformed into his true form and took off for the sky. The journey back to the palace was filled with even more laughter as the subject of conversation shifted to a certain demon lord.

"So we've settled that Inuyasha would look simply _gorgeous_ in royal blue and gold, what colors would suit Sesshomaru if not white?"

Said lord's ear twitched at the sound of his name. He turned his head towards his little brother as if he had the power to stop the discussion. Inuyasha simply snorted.

"Hmm. That's a good question, I honestly couldn't imagine him in anything but white," Kazubana said scratching her chin in thought. The two pondered for a moment, imagining the demon lord in various kimono of different hues and patterns.

"I've got it!" exclaimed Kagome, "Purple!"

Inuyasha nearly fell off of A-Un in laughter and Sesshomaru very nearly considered pushing him to finish the job.

"You know you're right Kagome! I think purple would suit Lord Sesshomaru very well!"

"Right? Maybe they could match their kimono with complementary patterns!"

"We should tell Lady Kimiko when we return!"

With that, the boys decided to stop listening.

They arrived back at the Western Palace very close to daybreak. Kazubana could see the slivers of sunlight peeking over the horizon behind the distant trees. She felt a slight pull at her heart at the thought that she only had a few hours left to spend with Lord Sesshomaru.

 _Come on Kazu, you act like he's going to war!_ Kazubana shook her head of all of her negative thoughts and decided to just enjoy her alone time. She could practice her wind magic, she could go on walks, she could have more girl talk with Kagome. With that, she looked over to Kagome who was tying a sack to A-Un's saddle.

"What's in there Kagome?"

"Oh, here? Just some sweets and medicinal herbs for the people in my village."

"Your village?"

"Yeah, Inuyasha and I are going to visit there for a few days," Kazubana felt her heart sink even lower. She wasn't happy to see Sesshomaru leave at all, but at least with Kagome there, she would have another fish out of water who just happened to be the fancy of one of the dog demon brothers with her.

"Oh, alright."

"Don't worry Kazu, it's only for a few days! Maybe you could come with us?"

"Oi! Kagome!" Inuyasha made a cross with his arms and shook his head violently.

"Oh right! Um… Kazu, you could come with us _another_ time." Kazubana was confused, and she would be lying if she said she wasn't offended. However, Kagome and Inuyasha were two of the kindest people she'd ever met (even if Inuyasha liked to hide it) so she figured if she couldn't go with them this time, it was for a good reason.

"I understand, have fun!"

They shared a hug, and Kazubana watched as the couple took off on A-Un. She felt Sesshomaru walk up behind her and place a hand on her shoulder.

"It is also time for this one to depart."

"I see," Kazu turned around to face him, locking blazing crimson with golden amber.

"Will you be alright?"

"I will, because I know that no matter what, you will return."

Sesshomaru smiled and planted a kiss on Kazu's forehead that she stood on her tiptoes to lean into. They squeezed hands one last time before Sesshomaru took off in the opposite direction, transforming and flying higher and higher into the sky. Kazubana didn't take her eyes off of him until he was a tiny speck on the horizon. After she could no longer see him, the full weight of his absence finally took hold, and she sighed as she walked back to her pavilion.

She did not need Lord Sesshomaru. In fact, the first few hours without him weren't bad at all. The first thing she did was get some must needed rest. With the help of Mai, she changed into her sleeping robes and practically threw herself onto her futon. She woke up around noon and ate a nice lunch of mackerel and rice balls. Due to Kagome's absence, Lady Hisoka postponed their court lessons to later in the week when she returned, so Kazu was free to do whatever she pleased for the day. Ecstatic, she got up and Mai dressed her in a simple but lovely kimono of orange with gold pinstripes. As soon as the obi was tied off Kazu rushed out the door and towards the Wisteria Palace in order to find Kago-

 _Oh right, that's why lessons were canceled today._ She thought to herself halfway through the grounds. She simply huffed and shrugged and redirected herself to the main palace. As she stepped through the threshold she was greeted with the sight of dozens of maids busying themselves with various tasks. They were dusting and polishing and sweeping and doing so many things that Kazu thought she'd get dizzy watching them. She shook her head and did a double-take when she saw a familiar-looking head of black hair holding a basket of cloth.

"Umeko!" she said rushing over to the demoness.

"Lady Kazubana," she greeted bowing low before her.

"Umeko what are you doing? You don't have to do that for me!"

"Lady Kazubana is too kind. This one is but a humble servant."

"Um...is this a game?" Kazu asked confused. Looking down at the still bowing Umeko, she could see her shaking, and smell a rise in her youki. With a growl, Umeko got up and pulled Kazu behind a nearby screen.

"Oi, Kazu, you see that woman over there?" She asked pointing in a direction behind the screen. Kazu looked around it and followed Umeko's finger. To her surprise, she was pointing at Lady Hisoka.

"Oh yes! She's my court teacher!"

"Yeah yeah, and you know what else?" Kazu shook her head.

"She's my aunt!"

"Really?"

"Yes really! And you know what else _else_? If she catches me acting familiar with you, I'm gonna be missing more than you-know-what!"

"Oh…"

"Look, I get it, you can't spend a day without my awesome presence, I wouldn't be able to resist me if I were you either, but duty calls. I promise I'll play with you later."

"I understand, I know how strict Lady Hisoka can be," Kazu said sheepishly.

"Tch, tell me about it, I've been dealing with it for well over eighty years." the two laughed before being cut off by the sound of Lady Hisoka's shrill voice.

"Umeko? Where are you? You better not be slacking off or I'm telling your mother!"

"Dammit! Gotta run!" And with that, Umeko grabbed her basket and took off back towards the main hall. Kazubana stood up and decided to head towards the living quarters. Being Lord Sesshomaru's principal...companion, certainly had its benefits. She had access to pretty much any room in the palace, aside from other males of course, but then again, the only man she interacted with on a regular basis aside from Sesshomaru was Inuyasha, so she was hardly missing anything. With this power, she was free to enter any chamber in the main quarters. The first few were a bit boring. There was Sesshomaru's study which was filled with various shelves holding scrolls and notes. She carefully considered everything that could go wrong with her reading them, but decided if they were out in the open like that, they surely couldn't be hiding any military secrets. She picked one up and skimmed through it, quickly discovering that the contents were definitely more interesting in her head.

 _What did you expect Kazu? A poem exalting all of your virtues?_

The scroll only had a hastily scrawled inventory of all the tatami mats in the palace and the dates on which to change them.

 _Well, it's good to know that the mats in my quarters will be rotated in the spring…_

She skimmed through a few more scrolls to find that the tatami inventory was actually the _most_ interesting one. She gave up and put them back where she got them only to have one fall down. She picked it up and noticed that the paper was slightly different, and the penmanship was more delicate. She opened it fully and began to read.

 _A gentle caress_

 _Carried on wind-kissed fingers_

 _…_

Kazu noticed that the last line had been blotted out several times already and she couldn't make out what they said.

 _Lord Sesshomaru writes poetry? I wonder who this is about…_

After carefully rerolling the paper and placing it back on the shelf, she stepped out of the study and continued her trek through the main quarters. Her nose wasn't as good as an inu yokai's, but it was good enough to tell whether or not anyone important was in the room. So far it seemed like everyone who was home was busy, and anyone who wasn't busy wasn't home. Lady Saki was out with her siblings, Mai was part of the maids who were vigorously cleaning the palace, and even Lady Kimiko was doing something besides playing mind-games with the courtiers for once. One sniff outside of her quarters revealed that she was inside with the Prime Minister, and one listen was enough to tell Kazu that whatever they were discussing was important. So she made her way out of the main building and back to her pavilion. By the time she finished her palace snoop, the sun had begun to set and it was time for dinner. Mai served her evening meal of salmon, rice, and pickles with a smile, but to Kazu's dismay, she had to leave again to finish up in the palace before Lord Sesshomaru returned. To make matters worse, Kazu's nap in the morning made it so that she wasn't even tired that night, and could not sleep. She sat up from her futon in frustration and threw off the covers. She had to face it.

She was bored.

She was so completely and utterly bored that she couldn't stand it. She had to get out and do something. She wished that she insisted that Sesshomaru take her with him, she wished that she begged Kagome to stay a little longer, she wished that she knew where Lady Saki was going. She even wished that Jaken wasn't so busy doing...whatever it is that Jaken does. She threw her pillow across the room, then giggled to herself about how silly and childish that felt.

 _Oh no, I've resorted to laughing at my own jokes._

Finally reaching the end of her rope, she got up, grabbed her fans, and went out into the gardens.

The autumn night chill felt refreshing on her flushed skin, and she felt herself growing calmer. She walked until she reached the pond and sat out on the edge of it, letting her bare feet stir ripples into the water. The fan in her hand felt heavy despite being made of paper. She found herself staring at it blankly, counting the folds in it.

One, two, three, fo-

 _Mmmmm_

She jumped up at the sound. She looked around the garden but found that she was alone.

"That's funny, I swear I heard someone humming…"

She went back to looking at her fan, this time slightly on edge.

 _Mmmmm_

She jumped up again, this time causing a blast of air to cut through the trees, chopping off a few branches.

"Oh dear, Umeko is not going to like that."

She listened carefully for any signs of life, but only heard crickets, frogs, and her own rapid breath. She turned around to head back to her room when all of a sudden she heard a whisper from behind her, causing her to turn around and shoot out a blast of wind.

There was no one there.

"Whoever you are, you'd better stop or you'll be sorry!" she yelled into the night air.

Kazu was hardly a scaredy-cat, in fact, she liked to think of herself as brave. However, despite the tight security of the palace, she couldn't help but feel a deep feeling of foreboding in the pit of her stomach. She clenched her fan and took two steps towards the pavilion when she felt her fan start to vibrate rapidly, and the whispering she heard before got louder. She fell to her knees dropping her fan and grabbing her head with both hands. She could almost make out the whispers, right when she felt that she knew what it was saying she'd lose it, as if it were a distant memory, one that was hers but not hers at the same time. She crawled towards her fallen fan in hopes that it would make the whispering stop, but as soon as she grabbed it the noise only got louder and louder until it reached an ear-splitting crescendo in her mind. Despite this, she could still only partially make out the words.

 **_Do- mmmmm_ **

**_Does- mmm Ka_ **

**_Domm- t- mm-urt m K-ra?_ **

Finally, she understood what it said.

 **_Does it hurt Kagura?_ **

Then everything went black.


	19. Floating Memories Pt 1

A/N: Hello everyone! I'm so sorry about the extended hiatus! Things have been really chaotic lately with my school and the pandemic, especially the transition to online classes!  
But don't worry, I plan to update more regularly now that things are now clearing up for my schedule. I hope that you and you're loved ones are all safe and healthy, and that you all enjoy this chapter! :D 

* * *

**Chapter 19: Floating Memories Pt. 1**  
 **Chapter by 4evaconfuzzled**

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Things were a hazy blur when Kazubana finally came to. Her head was heavy and clouded, and her arms were throbbing with a dull aching pain. She tried crying out but found her voice slow and slurred. She shook her head a few times and immediately regretted that decision. After what felt like hours, she finally opened her eyes to see that she was in what looked like some sort of dungeon. Her feet were shackled in iron chains, and trying to move her arms revealed that they were also what was pinning her to the wall. The ground was cool and damp, and the air smelled of earth and blood, though she didn't feel wounded. _Where am I?_ Kazu thought. Only a few feet in front of her were iron bars in a checkered pattern. Despite their rusted appearance, they looked sturdy enough to take a few beatings, ruling out the idea of breaking past them. _That is if I managed to break out of these chains._ She gave the shackles a few experimental tugs and found that they weren't giving out anytime soon. Looking through the rusted lattice iron bars of her cell revealed no clues to her location or who may have taken her. They only served to make her feel even more on edge about the situation. The air was dank and smelled of mold, and she heard the soft squeaks of mice somewhere nearby. Suddenly, she felt a demonic aura. It was strong and engulfed her easily. The feeling sent an eerie chill down her spine and made the hairs on her neck stand up. However, it wasn't the strength of the aura that made her feel this way. It was the familiarity of it.

As the aura grew stronger, a face began to appear through the darkness. It was a man only a bit taller than herself. He had snow-white hair, not unlike Sesshomaru and his brother's. Yet, this man was not an inu youkai. In fact, Kazu couldn't tell _what_ he was. Usually, different youkai had different auras that she could differentiate. But this one had an aura that appeared to be a conglomerate of many auras. Like a patchwork quilt, except they were not harmonious, fighting each other for dominance. It was a rather large one too, pushing up against her, and making her want to suffocate. There was only one specific youkai aura within him that she could decipher, but for some reason, the word would not come to her mind.

The man stopped directly in front of her cell. In the meager torchlight, she could see that slightly below the bangs of his messy hair, was a pure white cloth over his eyes.

 _He's blind?_ Kazubana thought to herself. She found it hard to believe, the way he seemed to focus directly on her.

"Who are you?" Kazu asked shakily.

The man did not respond. He only pulled out a rusty iron key and opened her cell. Kazu tensed immediately and backed up against the damp dirt wall as best as she could. The man was on her before she knew it, and she screamed internally, the sound not able to reach her lips. Afraid of what he might do next, she turned her head and closed her eyes. She felt a weight on her chest, and her breath caught in her throat. Slowly, she opened her eyes back up and found herself in a cellar, but with someone else.

"Did you have fun outside Kagura?" a voice asked.

She looked down and found nothing on her chest. It was then that she realized that this body was not hers. She was in a purple and white kimono, kneeling on the bare earthen ground. She looked around and found herself surrounded by the flesh of various decaying youkai. She could not hold back her cry and found that even her voice was different. Looking ahead, she saw the detached head of a man who was familiar, yet unfamiliar. At least, he was familiar to this body.

"While I slept, you left the castle didn't you?" he continued. Four tentacles shot out from the youkai flesh and pulled her closer to the man's face. She cried out again, losing feeling in her limbs as the tentacles tightened themselves. She tried to resist looking at the man directly in his eyes, but one slimy tentacle wrapped itself around her neck and twisted until she was face to face with his piercing red eyes. His skin was deathly pale, almost green, and it looked almost like it was melting from his face. She wanted to throw up.

"Kagura, you are part of me. Would you like to become part of my flesh again?"

The stench of all the body parts made Kazu want to gag. She did not know who this man was or what he meant by, ' _become part of his flesh again'_. All she knew was that she wanted to get out as soon as possible.

"W-Wait! I promise I won't do it again!" Her body responded without thinking. _How am I responding when I didn't even think of an answer?_ Kazu thought. _Unless…_

Before she could continue her thought she was brought back to her dungeon with a jolt. Her heart was racing and she was gasping for air. A quick scan around confirmed that she was indeed back with the strange blindfolded youkai.

"Wh-What... did you do... to me?" Kazu gasped out between breaths. The youkai sat up from her chest and just laughed.

"Yes...he will certainly come." And with that, he disappeared into a cloud to purple smoke. The noxious gas left Kazu in a coughing fit, and she felt herself grow light-headed.

 _Who is he talking about? Who will 'certainly come'_ she thought to herself. She had no idea. She only knew that whoever did come, she hoped from the bottom of her heart that it was Sesshomaru.

The first specks of golden-gray sunlight peeked through Mai's window in the servants quarters of the Tiger Lily Pavilion and gently coaxed her awake. She rose from her futon, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, stretching and yawning all the way. Mai may have been an early riser by nature, but that didn't make it any easier to actually stay awake. She hummed an upbeat tune to wake herself up as she dressed in a simple kimono of pale blue and prepared to do her morning chores. She went outside to see that the other servant had already collected and portioned the morning water. A large bucket for cooking, a larger bucket for cleaning, and sure enough the barrel was missing, meaning that it was presumably in the bathing room ready to be heated for Lady Kazubana's bath. Mai took the bucket of cooking water to the hearth to prepare the morning tea.

When the water was hot, she carefully put the pot on a tray and carried it to Lady Kazubana's personal quarters. However, when she reached the sliding doors of her room, she noticed things were oddly quiet. Kazubana was not particularly loud, but she was usually stirring by this time.

"Excuse me," Mai called as she slid open the shoji door.

No one was there. She scanned the room for any sign of her presence. The futon was wrinkled and the blankets were tossed aside. Mai put down the tray and rushed over to the futon. A quick sniff revealed that she had not been there all night. The color drained from her cheeks and worry overtook her heart.

 _If she hadn't been here all night...where could she be?_

She tried to think of places she may have gone for the night, but couldn't imagine why she'd leave her futon unmade, or at least leave a note. Mai bolted to her feet and headed straight for the main palace. Her heart and mind were racing, the latter with worst case scenarios involving Lady Kazubana.

 _What could have happened? Is she lost? Was she taken? Did she run away?_

Her thoughts were interrupted when she burst through the doors of the main hall and stood face to face, or rather, face to chest, with Lord Sesshomaru. On command, Mai fell to her knees, forehead touching the floor,

"Forgive me my lord, I did not mean to run into you!"

The youkai grunted his acknowledgement, her signal to rise, which she did. Sesshomaru was curious though. Mai was usually very attentive and careful, one of the reasons she was assigned to Kazubana. It wasn't like her to run around not paying attention to where she was going.

"What worries you?"

Mai's first attempt to explain was a pathetic stammer that left her blushing. She took a deep breath and steeled herself before responding,

"Lady Kazubana is missing."

Mai only had time to see Lord Sesshomaru's eyes flash red before she was shoved aside, (surprisingly gently) and left alone with the guards in the entrance to the main hall.

Lord Sesshomaru reached the Tiger Lily Pavilion in two seconds flat, and that was still too long for him. He sniffed around her quarters and followed her scent to the gardens, where it disappeared part way through. However, he picked up another scent, one that was familiar yet different. He took a mental note of that before noticing that it wasn't that Kazu's scent disappeared, but it was merely covered by the scent of the familiar yet unfamiliar youkai, and that scent continued further west. Sesshomaru growled as he looked in the direction the scent continued. Whoever took Kazubana was in his territory, and that was unacceptable. The sound of rushing footsteps interrupted his thoughts and Sesshomaru growled even louder when he saw four of the guards that were stationed at Kazubana's quarters. Mai followed close behind them.

"You four. What were you doing last night?" The youkai lord boomed.

The guards were visibly distressed, but tried to hold their composure. The bravest one, a brown haired inu-youkai, stepped forward and spoke.

"We were guarding the personal quarters of Lady Kazubana as we were told," he said.

"If you were doing as you were told, she would not be missing!" Sesshomaru spat.

The bravest one bowed, and the other three hustled to follow suit,

"We swear we never left our posts! We heard nothing out of the ordinary, and we weren't made aware of anything suspicious until Mai came running out of the lady's room this morning!"

Sesshomaru eyed them before turning back to the west. Even without his youkai senses he'd be able to feel the fear radiating from the four guards. Mai too, was radiating fear, from how her youki was shrunken in on herself even though the lord's anger was not directed at her.

"You will be dealt with when I return," Sesshomaru said as he took to the sky in flight. Right now, finding Kazubana was more important. If they were telling the truth, then whatever this youkai was had the power to mask their scent at will, which meant that this youkai was a force to be reckoned with.

Kazubana lost count of how many of Kagura's visions she saw. They all varied in intensity, and evoked a different feeling from within her. She saw visions of strange youkai that smelled similar to her, although they looked nothing alike. Were they related? They couldn't be. Unless, they weren't naturally born? Some of the youkai made her feel annoyed, and others made her feel on edge. One youkai in particular with pale skin stark white hair made her feel at ease, and she felt a tear roll down her cheek. She was carrying something that she could quite make out. When she was just about to see it, the vision faded. There were visions of her simply flying. She felt peace, but also anxiety. Why was she anxious? Hadn't she always wanted to be free? That's right, she wasn't free. She was flying because she was told to. She was told to go follow someone, or to fetch something. Or...to fight. She remembered now. She saw a vision of wolves. Countless wolves who fell to her fan, only to be raised again by that same fan. She sent one to the leader of the wolf tribe to lure him to her location. So that...someone...could get something. The vision was fading, she couldn't see clearly.

She was fighting now, a youkai. No. Not a youkai, a hanyou. Kagura knew a hanyou? He looked very familiar, and smelled familiar too. He was wearing a bright red robe, with matching red hakama. Strange, that's the same outfit as…

" _Kaze no Kizu!_ "

Inuyasha?

I fought Inuyasha?

No.

 _Kagura_ fought Inuyasha.

But why would she fight him?

"Inuyasha!"

That voice... That voice is also familiar. The vision faded in and out. Kazubana fought to keep it clear. There was a human. She looked and smelled like...Kagome? What was she wearing? Her kimono is so short! There were other humans as well. They smelled familiar, but she couldn't recognize them.

What is the connection? We both knew Inuyasha and Kagome.

The vision shifted. She was wet. Someone had just pulled her from a river. Jaken was also wet, along with a little human girl. She looked up to see Lord Sesshomaru. Her heart was racing. She felt so many things at once. Admiration, sorrow, longing, anger, jealousy, and...something else.

Finally, the vision shifted again. This time she felt pain. Both physical and emotional. There was that same man with the stringy black hair and tentacles. His name was on the tip of her tongue. She felt pure rage just looking at him. He had something of hers, something that she needed in order to truly be free, but he was taunting her. She needed Sesshomaru's help. She needed him to kill this man and free her. He was the only one who could. This man. No This youkai. No. This _hanyou,_ was the reason she was doing all of these horrible things. But wait, he's also the reason she existed...right?

Kazubana's vision went white as a stabbing pain went through her heart. She screamed out and water filled her eyes.

"Do you feel it? Your heart? Does it hurt?"

Kazubana blinked away the tears and looked up to see the man with the blindfold. He was uncomfortably close to her face wearing a smug expression. He looked like he was about to taunt her again when he suddenly froze like a cat noticing a bird.

"He's here."

Kazubana tried to make sense of what he meant but her body was too weak. Her vision went black and her head felt heavy. The last thing she saw was the image of the man turning around and leaving the dungeon.

Sesshomaru touched down in front of an opulent manor located deep beyond the western forest of his domain. It was fairly large and the grounds were well taken care of, odd, considering there were no servants in sight. A manor of this size would require at least two dozen. However, the familiar yet unfamiliar scent was all over the place, meaning this was certainly the place. The only thing keeping Sesshomaru from unleashing Bakusaiga and completely obliterating the place was the possibility of Kazubana being inside and the risk of harming her. Luckily, his prey presented itself before him not too long after he had the thought.

"Good morning," the strange youkai said, sitting calmly on the roof of the manor. "Took you long enough."

"Where is Kazubana?" Sesshomaru asked, poison dripping from his claws and sizzling onto the ground below.

"She's in my house," the youkai replied with a smirk.

Sesshomaru's hand immediately reached for the hilt of Bakusaiga.

"My, my, hold on a minute! Don't you want to discuss things like gentlemen first?"

"You've already lost that right the second you laid your hands on Kazubana," and with that he summoned his whip of light and struck at the youkai. He leapt out of the way, leaving a corroded hole where the whip struck. He landed on a nearby tree where Sesshomaru took aim again, and missed once more. The youkai smirked again, leaping out of the way before the tree could fall to the ground. Again and again Sesshomaru struck, just missing the strange youkai, destroying the entire entrance yard in the process. Sesshomaru was losing his control. How was this youkai dodging all of his attacks when he was blindfolded? Were his senses that sharp?

"Sesshomaru, you should really work on your aim shouldn't you? It isn't like you to be this slow."

Before Sesshomaru could wonder how this creature knew his fighting style, an explosion from the manor nearly knocked the wind out of them both. Sesshomaru leapt up and righted himself, hovering just above the ground, closing his eyes to avoid the debris. When he opened them again, the strange youkai was lying limp a few yards away from him, and coming from the manor was a fierce whirlwind. Wooden beams, tree branches, and mats were flying all around it, and Sesshomaru could discern the source. Suddenly, the winds subsided as quickly as it began, and the debris was sent flying in all directions. Sesshomaru paid no mind to it as he rushed forward looking for any sign of Kazubana, but before he could even reach the steps, a ragged Kazubana emerged from the main doors, clothes torn, hair windblown, and eyes devoid of light.

"Se-Sesshomaru," she rasped, collapsing on the stairs. The youkai lord was there in an instant to catch her, eyes searching her face and body for any injuries.

The strange youkai watched from where he was launched with a malicious grin.

 _She's back._

And he disappeared into a cloud of purple mist.


End file.
